Till I'm Gone
by Sora Matasuki
Summary: Two years before the start of the movie, the Hamada family was subject to a tragedy that would shake Tadashi's perception on his actions and life, forever. Hiro is struggling to fit in at High School, and his actions will shape the course of their family, forever. After all, something had to spark Baymax into being, right?
1. Chapter 1

_**Till I'm Gone**_

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><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

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><p>TRIGGER WARNING FOR ANYONE WHO HAS LOST A FAMILY OR FRIEND TO DEPRESSION<p>

(I promise it gets better)

**TRIGGER WARNING FOR SELF HARM/SELF-HATING THOUGHTS IN LATER CHAPTERS**

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><p>Tadashi was late. So late, that his dinner had probably started growing icicles. The sixteen year old slammed on the brakes as he directed the car to around the corner, the tires giving off that nasty squealing sound that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up to attention. The teen managed to regain control of the car and slowly drifted to the side of the road, his blinker blinking obnoxiously.<p>

He turned the steering wheel and guided the car into the parking lot behind his Aunt's Bakery and Cafe that shared their home on the two floors above the restaurant. Putting it in park and taking out the key, Tadashi surged outwards, grabbing his bookbag in one smooth motion.

Shutting the door, the Japanese-American glanced over at the setting sun and then shook his head. So what if he was late, Hiro was fine with postponing watching that movie till another day, right?

The thought didn't ring as true as Tadashi would have liked but he shrugged the disquiet out of his mind. Hiro was fine. Even if at school he was rather reclusive, having his nose stuck in a book all the time…

Tadashi shook his head. _Stop that! _he scolded himself. With a shrug, the sixteen year old walked around the back and to the front of the shop. Exiting regulars stopped to say hello to him as he entered the restaurant and Tadashi found himself grinning to himself.

"Hey Aunt Cass." he called over the bustle of happy customers eating themselves into a food coma.

His grin faded as Cass leveled him with a stern _Look. _"Tadashi, you said you were going to be home by three. _Where were you_?" she questioned.

Tadashi winced. "I got held up." he said. Cass's frosty glare faded to a sad expression as she sighed.

"Hiro was so excited to go to that movie with you…" she said, then gestured towards the back where the stairs to their living quarters were with her head, "Hiro hasn't had dinner, I think he was taking a nap so didn't hear my call for him to come eat." Her soft look turned stern and made Tadashi look down at his shoes with a guilty flinch. "_You two_ can sit down and have a meal like _real brothers_ since I still need to deal with the dinner rush."

Tadashi nodded, still looking at his shoes as his cheeks heated up from embarrassment. "Yes Aunt Cass…" he murmured, starting to make his way up the stairs.

Cass nodded firmly before redirecting her attention to an old lady who patted Cass' hand with a fond expression.

Tadashi heard the old woman say kindly, "Don't worry dear, everything will sort itself out soon enough."

Aunt Cass' reply was cut off by the walls as Tadashi ascended into the darkened upper floors.

Tadashi entered the large room that both of them shared and noted that Hiro's screen saver was active, indicating that he'd been awake long enough after school to go trolling through the internet on his computer.

"Hiro?" Tadashi called, eyes scanning the darkness for his brother's sleeping form in his side of the shoji screen. "Hiro, it's time to wake up. Aunt Cass said it's time for dinner!"

There was silence and Tadashi let out a sigh as he walked over to where the light switch was. "Sorry Hiro but it's time for you to - Hiro?"

Hiro's bed was neat and tidy and completely void of it's owner, something Tadashi never saw. It took a combination of bribery, threats to his experiments and sweets to actually get him to tidy up his half of the room, and up when he was asleep. A sinking feeling was rising in Tadashi's chest.

Movement caught his eye and the elder teen again noticed that Hiro's computer was active. Walking over from the light switch, Tadashi moved the mouse and was relieved to find that it wasn't password protected.

That relief quickly faded as he scanned the open tabs.

One article read 'HOW TO KILL YOURSELF PAINLESSLY' and the rest held similar searches. A sick feeling started stirring in his gut as he clicked on his brother's internet history. Similar searches with keywords about 'safe places to cut', 'how many pills does it take to die', 'does death hurt', 'will it be better if I'm gone', dated back months. It was as if it started near the beginning of the school year.

Tadashi's vision swam as his breath caught in his throat. _Where's Hiro? _the thought dimly penetrated the fog clouding his mind. _I have to find Hiro! _

"HIRO!" he called, near the top of his lungs. "HIRO WHERE ARE YOU!"

There was only silence.

A litany of swears and pleas to a God Tadashi was unsure even existed tore through his mind, some slipping out of his mouth as he turned on his heel to run into the dark hallway. In comparison to when he had entered the floor, the darkness seemed harsh and oppressive where in the beginning, it had only been a sign that Hiro was tired enough to be asleep. But now, it was the threat of an eternal slumber that urged Tadashi to run through the hallway, calling for his little brother.

"Hiro!" he yelled, ducking his head into a bathroom that he knew held sleeping pills and nearly wept when he found Hiro wasn't on the ground, overdosed. But his joy at the find was only brief as he remembered that there were four more bathrooms in total in the living space they all lived in.

"C'mon, please be alright, please be okay!" Tadashi begged, unsure of who he was addressing as he checked on the third bathroom. Only two more left, both on the top floor. He stared at the darkness that the stairs led up to and swallowed back bile and tears.

"Please don't be… _Please_." with that final tear filled plea, Tadashi charged up the stairs, breath coming in gasps.

It was the first door on that floor that was locked and it felt like a blow to the gut. "Hiro!" Tadashi called, banging on the door. "Don't do this!" _Please! Don't leave me! _

The silence was deafening and Tadashi put his forehead against the wood even as his fist pounded relentlessly against it. "Hiro open up!" _Please just say something. Something, anything, so I know you're still alive! _

Eventually, Tadashi knew that he wasn't going to get a response and backed up. _I'm sorry Hiro. I'm so sorry for not seeing this. _And then he charged at the door in the darkness.

His body connected with a dull thud and felt his shoulder protest at the impact. But Tadashi didn't care. His little brother was in there, overdosed or bleeding to death. He didn't have time to think about how it would hurt.

"HIRO!" Tadashi yelled his little brother's name as he hit the door again and it jerked slightly on it's hinges. Emboldened, the sixteen year old backed up and lunged forwards again. "Don't worry, I'm getting you out of there, _just hang on_!"

With the groan of breaking wood, Tadashi broke down the door enough to gain access to the bathroom and turned on the light. He felt his knees grow weak as he let himself fall to his knees at the sight of blood pooling around his brother's red soaked wrist.

"Hiro, no…" he gasped through clenched hands, the tears he had been holding at bay ever since he found his brother's internet history streaming down his cheeks. "No, baby brother, my otouto… please… stay alive!"

Casting his watery eyes around the room, Tadashi found a towel and pressed it against the wound, gathering the still warm (still warm, his heart nearly stopped in joy at the thought!) body of his little brother close so as to better staunch the blood flow. Tadashi didn't know how long Hiro had been bleeding for.

He should have been home so much earlier! Curling up around his little brother's limp body, Tadashi cried, before lifting up his head and screaming for help, ignoring how his throat tore and he choked on tears and bile.

_Hiro… why? Please stay alive! Don't be… Please don't be dead…_

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><p><strong><em>AN: <em>**So... I'm writing out a personal headcannon (that means it fits into cannon) for nanowrimo and just to let everyone know, this is just the beginning. There _IS _more to the story than just this scene. Please tell me what you guys think! (Just don't kill me, please!)


	2. Chapter 2

_**Till I'm Gone**_

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><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter Two<strong>

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><p><span>Eight months earlier...<em><br>_

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><p>"Oh look at you two, my wonderful highschoolers…" Aunt Cass sighed, dreamily staring at the brothers. She was so busy in her overjoyed staring that she completely missed the shared looks of commiserated misery in the face of an overly mothering force such as their Aunt that the twelve and sixteen year old traded.<p>

Abruptly, she shook her head and leveled both boys with a stern look, making Hiro straighten from the uncomfortable slouch he was gaining. "Now you boys remember to come straight home, I'm making something _special _to commemorate my two boys being in high school! I feel so old…"

Hiro perked up. "Hot wings?" he asked hopefully.

Aunt Cass smilled mysteriously. "Maaaybe." she said cheerfully.

"Is it Takoyaki?" Tadashi piped in, grinning at the thought.

"You boys will have to come home and see, won't you." Cass said warmly before squeeling. "Oh come here, both of you! Big hugs, big hugs!"

With mutual groans, the brothers obliged their Aunt's clinginess in a group hug.

"Oh my boys, you both are gowng up so fast…" she sighed, stepping back and wiping away a few tears. "Now. Hurry up, otherwise you both will be late!" she warned.

"Bye Aunt Cass! C'mon Hiro, race you to the car!"

"You're on!" Hiro grinned at the challenge. "On your marks, get set, GO!" the twelve year old crowed. In his excitement though, it came out as "nyermarsgesetGO!" but Tadashi obviously knew what his little brother meant as the two burst into motion and sprinted for the front door.

"Drive safely, Tadashi!" Aunt Cass called after them, smiling to herself as she watched the two enter into a new stage of life.

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><p>The cool morning air hit Hiro's face and he felt a grin spread across his lips as he ran.<p>

"Last one to the car has to pick up the winner's room!" he called over to Tadashi who laughed.

"I'd better make a mess then!" he called in reply. "Otherwise there'll be nothing for you t pick up!" With that statement out of the way, the elder brother increased his stride. Hiro let out an undignified squawk and followed suite.

The two Hamada boys ran and leapt off the curb, Tadashi's longer legs eating up the distance but Hiro had the advantage of youth on his side. And so it was that a dual call of ‟FIRST!" mingled with the thud of two bodies hitting the metal contraption at the same, forming one harmonious note.

Panting from the exertion, the brothers locked wide eyes and immediately started laughing.

"We-we didn't… come up with… a stipulation for…. for a tie!" Hiro howled, tears of laughter leaking out of his eyes.

"So… does this call for a truce?" Tadashi laughed, offering a fist bump to which Hiro - still giggling - obliged. Their knuckles brushed and Hiro made an exploding noise softly, cheeks puffing out as he wiggled his fingers. Tadashi chuckled but made the obligatory 'boom' noise as well, wiggling his own fingers at Hiro.

The two brothers grinned at each other before Hiro moved to go around the back to hop into the passenger seat. Suddenly, Tadashi surged forwards and grabbed the hood of Hiro's hoodie and yanked him backwards. Choking slightly, his eyes widened as a car sped through the parking lot noisily, nearly clipping Tadashi's car.

"Onī-san…" Hiro mumbled shakily, shivering and shocked enough by his near brush with death that he had slipped into calling Tadashi by his formal title gifted to them by their heritage. It had been something that hailed back from when they were little. Something that their American side of the family had slowly bled out. Not intentionally of course, but without the constant reminders… things fade.

Tadashi shook his head and pulled his little brother close as he glared in the direction of the long gone speeder. "Jerk. He could have killed you at the speed he was going!"

"I'm _fine _Tadashi." Hiro pulled away from his brother's embrace despite wanting to stay a little longer. Tadashi gave him a once over then nodded, satisfied that there weren't any true injuries sustained from the incident.

"C'mon Otōto, let's go to school." Tadashi finally said, ruffling Hiro's hair, making the twelve year old scowl and try to bat the bigger boy's hand away.

"Tadashi, stop it! No touchie the hair!"

"Ooh… scary grammar." Tadashi teased. "I'm _so _scared."

"Shut up, Nī-san…" Hiro muttered, ignoring the stunned look Tadashi sent his way.

That was the second time that his little brother had called him that…. Dim memories of a time before Aunt Cass flooded the sixteen year old's mind and Tadashi found himself with a melting heart and bittersweet tears threatening to fall.

"_Tadashi, _are you gonna unlock the door or not?!" came the familiar impatient drawl and the elder brother shook his head, the thought fading like the others on that same subject always did.

"Yeah, yeah, hold your horses, Hiro!" Tadashi called, laughing at the impatient huff he got in reply. "You're such a drama queen."

"Am _not!_" came the indignant squawk, making Tadashi laugh harder as he unlocked the car and slid in.

"I love you, Hiro." Tadashi murmured, reaching over to brush a hand on his little brother's shoulder.

Hiro flushed and looked out the window. "Yeah… same here." he muttered, clearly embarrassed to be talking about _feelings_, yuck.

Tadashi chuckled softly and started the car, pulling out of the parking lot.

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><p>Hiro would never admit it, but he was nervous. He was excited to be learning things that would be more of a challenge to his brain yes, but… He would be the youngest Freshman in attendance. Statistically speaking, people didn't like people who were different. And Hiro was definitely different.<p>

He was smart for one thing, and he really didn't have all that big a filter on his mouth - previous experiences in elementary and middle school had shown the results of that nasty combination. Another thing was that he was _small_. And Tadashi was tall and large and looked like he was a grown up. Hiro just… looked like the kid he was. Add that all up and the probability of Hiro being bullied shot up to the higher ranges of 80%.

He was _different_. And different meant weird. Which equalled being shoved into lockers! Oh he _prayed _that the lockers were too small for him to fit. But what about bathrooms - did those have cameras or would he get ambushed there and - logically, Hiro knew that he had no true basis for his fears but he couldn't help it! Hiro knew if he followed this train of thought through it's logical conclusion, he'd have an anxiety attack.

"Hiro? We're here." Tadashi's soothing voice broke through the tidal wave of panic and the twelve year old latched onto that feeling of comfort like a life preserver.

"Okay." Hiro was glad his voice didn't reveal how shaken he was to be joining High School's student population.

"...you gonna get out?" Tadashi asked, confusion clear in his voice.

Hiro started and then laughed, ruffling his hair sheepishly. "Yeah, I'm coming! Just got lost in thought!"

"Don't wander too much. You won't know where the exit is, your head's so big." Tadashi teased.

The twelve year old rolled his brown eyes. "Oh haha, Tadashi. Very funny." he deadpanned as he slipped out of the passenger side, backpack slamming into his back. Hiro winced as his books' sharp corners dug deeply into his spine.

"Hey, not _all_ of us can be geniuses." Tadashi shrugged, grinning.

"You're one to talk, Mr. I-Skipped-a-Grade." Hiro snarked, brown eyes sparking in amusement as his smile grew wide enough to crinkle the corners.

Tadashi threw back his head and let out a loud laugh.

"That is true, you've got me there little brother." the sixteen year old admitted, shaking his head before jerking it towards the school grounds. "C'mon let's go."

Hiro stared nervously at his brother's retreating back as the elder headed towards the entrance to the school then slowly nodded, not moving an inch. He watched as Tadashi greeted old friends and was swallowed up by the similarly tall crowd. Tadashi belonged here. Hiro was slowly gaining a creeping feeling that he… wasn't.

It was then that Hiro realized something.

He wasn't nervous. Oh no, Hiro was _terrified. _

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><p><em><strong>AN:<strong> _Big thanks to Snowflake, BlueD, Silverstream, Escaping The Shadow, Oncomingstorm10, Blue Torpedo and Highcrest Tomoko for reviewing! I am simply blown away! 7 reviews in a 2 day(ish) period? That's never happened to me before! So from the bottom of my heart, I thank you all! Now, concerning Hiro... Everyone take deeeep breathes. Now, repeat after me: 'this is canon compliant.' rinse and repeat until you realize what I mean by saying this. Now, this is no way saying that it's a happy journey... You are embarking in a journey with our twelve year old genius in to darkness that he may or may not return unscathed from... ^^ Love you all lots, and enjoy!


	3. Chapter 3

_**Till I'm Gone**_

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><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

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><p>Ms. Clarke, Hiro's homeroom teacher, was a fairly young woman who had been aptly nicknamed the English Dragon by the general school populous. She ruled with an iron fist and held a firm stance on what she deemed was appropriate and inappropriate behaviour. This sense of fierce fiery opinion rolled off the red head in droves and when Hiro was the first to enter, she simply nodded at him with barely a second glance at how tiny he was.<p>

This, alongside her firm battle ready stance, made Hiro minutely relax. If there were any problems, he was sure she would catch them. With her no nonsense demeanor, the probability of the older generations finding a way to do some sort of mischief on his small person had greatly diminished. If Hiro had to give an estimate, that percent was now at a 66 instead of an anxiety inducing 80.

Tentatively, Hiro tagged homeroom as a safe haven. It was tentative, because of the lack of true data gathered to make a solid conclusion. But based off of statistics, the twelve year old could make a hypothesis that he would be safe in this class. Slowly, students filed into the back, and Hiro tensed from his seat in the front row. The trial run to see if his hypothesis was on the right track had begun.

Most of his fellow Freshmen barely even gave him a second glance, too involved in chatting with their friends, which Hiro was grateful for. He'd hate to have the spotlight on him for something he couldn't control from day one. So far, so good.

"Alright!" Ms. Clarke announced, clapping her hands in an attempt to call attention to the fact that Homeroom was starting. Everyone kept chatting to their neighbors and Hiro could sense that a storm was brewing under his homeroom teacher's skin. The twelve year old watched in stupified facination as Clarke's face darkened and her eye twitched.

"Every year…" she muttter to herself before taking a _deep _breath, "_HEY!_ IT'S NOT _TALK TO YOUR FRIENDS TIME, _IT'S PAY ATTENTION TO THE ANNOUNCEMENTS TIME! _I WANT TO HEAR MY ANNOUNCEMENTS!_"

Despite Hiro's ringing ears, a giggle wanted to escape his lips as the whole classroom full of unsuspecting Freshmen went quiet all at once, the audible clicking noise of students shutting their mouths resounded loud and clear in the absolute silence.

"Thank you."

At this time, the speaker crackled to life. "_Goood morning, Shibuya Wolves! This is yoooouur principal, Mathew Henriiicks speaking with a speeecail message! Welcome back from the summer months and I hope that this year will be grrrreat!"_

There were muffled snorts from the back of the room to which Ms. Clarke leveled the perpetrators with a dark glower. Silence was once again restored. Just in time for an announcement that made Hiro's blood run cold.

"_Also, we have the honor housing our very own, local genius and robotics prodigy - HIIIRRRROOOO HAMADA! Younger brother to our very own Science Starrrrr, Tadashhhhhi Hamada, our Hiro - "_

Why… why did they have to announce that he was smart in front of the whole school? He had the right to share his smarts at his own discretion! They… He… Henricks had no right to announce it - to _blare it _- all across campus! That was something private!

Giggles and confused whispers met his ears. "Who names their kid 'Hero'?" a girl sitting next to him muttered, tossing her long blonde hair back over her shoulder and observing her nails for imperfections.

A boy from the back of the room laughed, sharp and mocking, his black hair spiked with gel poking out from a red beanie. "Were they trying to convince him that he was some sort of hero? How lame is _that_?"

"Mr. Alexander Andrews _that is_ _enough_!" Ms. Clarke said sharply, "I will not have that kind of language in this homeroom class."

Andrews leaned back, looking unimpressed. "Pffft, whatever you say Mizzes C."

Hiro bit down on his lip savagely, focusing on his desk as Ms. Clarke worked her way into a rage whilst regaining order n the classroom due to the majority of the classroom burst into raucous laughter at Andrew's disrespect and uncaring demeanor.

_Don't… don't listen, Hiro! _the twelve year old instructed himself, in a voice that sounded remarkably like Tadashi. _Okaasan and Otousan chose your name because it means generous, tolerant. So use that tolerance that they hoped for and don't do something stupid! _

" _- ordinarily starting ninth grade but our Hiro proved too smart!"_

"Like that's a good thing. He should've stayed witht he other loosers and played on the playground like a good little brat." Andrews said snidely.

Hiro's lip ached from the pressure he was using to bite down on it to keep from saying something that would get him punched in the nose. That sense of not belonging from the parking lot hit him like sledgehammer to the chest, making it hard to breathe.

"_So give him a grrreat big welcome, I'm sure our Hiro lead us all to greatness!" _

_I'M NOT YOURS, SO STOP SAYING 'OUR HIRO' I DON'T BELONG TO ANYONE! _Hiro screamed in his head. A sharp pain made him jerk as the metalic tang of blood filled his mouth. He had bitten through his lower lip.

Eyes wide, Hiro covered his mouth with his hands and fought to keep from swallowing the hot liquid. The screech of his chair sliding back brought an unwanted ammount of attention to his short stature and whispers flooded the room in his wake as he quickly rushed towards Ms. Clarke who upon seeing the blood leaking through his clenched figures, nodded towards the door.

"Go see a nurse, Hiro." she isntructed with dark sympathy in her eyes and flashed him a sympathetic smile that held no pity in them before turning her head to sharply glare at Andrews who was staring at the twelve year old with an unreadable expression. The entire class gasped at the fact that "Hero" Hamada was in their class and had heard all the cutting remarks. The girl with blonde hair looked down at her desk, wide eyed.

Hiro debated bowing to her - even though he hadn't dipped into his faded memories of Japanese customs in ages - and settled for an awkward dip of the head that caused his upper half to give a half bow. He couldn't really speak with all the blood in his mouth anyways. The twelve year old spun on his heel and tore out of the room, using his shoulder to push the door open.

"Did you see his face!" he heard Andrews bray.

He tried to ignore the mocking laughter that had sprung up because of that bow, of that drawing of his cultural heritage. His eyes burned as he fled the scorn of his fellow year mates, and tried to convince himself that it was because biting his lip was painful enough for them to water like they were.

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><p>Tadashi choked on his spit at the unexpected turn the announcements had taken.<p>

"Your brother's pretty smart, right? Think he'd be able to do my homework for me?" Thomas Matthews leaned back on his chair, the chair's front two legs up in the air, grinning as he brushed his hand through yellow hair.

Tadashi frowned and pushed his friend's chair back on all fours. "My little brother has an honor code, Thomas, he wouldn't do that. Don't try to get out of your own work you lazy bum." the sixteen year old scolded, reaching over to swat the seventeen year old in the back of the head.

Thomas pushed away his hand with a scowl. "But work is so booorring!" he protested.

Tadashi rolled his eyes.

"You'll never get a job and get into college that way." Tadashi reminded him.

"Bluh. You and your drive to go to _college_." Thomas made a face at the thought of _more school_, as if tasting something sour. " Live in the moment man, stop thinking so far ahead! Party a little! Live life!"

"And be a highschool dropout like you?" Tadashi smirked before sighing. "College opens so many doors, Thomas. You have no idea how many opportunities you're missing out on by not getting at _least_ your high school diploma."

"You sound like one of those stupid counselors. 'Get good grades!' 'Don't do drugs!' 'Don't drink until you're 21!' It's like…" Thomas paused for a moment to try and think of the words, "It's like they think we're irresponsible or somethin'."

Tadashi grinned. "Well you know, back in the 2000's, there was a famous study that found that teenagers are actually losing grey matter in the prefrontal cortex-"

"Stop! Stop! Stop! I don' wanna hear about your sick fascination with medical science!" Thomas yelped, before his stomach growled. "Ugh… I'm hungry…. I can't wait until lunch…"

"You had _five breakfast burritos _from Machirin's Tacos for breakfast." Tadashi deadpanned. "That's like more than five hundred _calories_. _How _are you still hungry?"

"He's a bottomless pit, that's why."

Both Tadashi and Thomas jumped at the sudden female voice that had chimed in from behind them.

Thomas twisted in his stead and scowled furiously, "Really Morris? _Eavesdropping? _That's low even for _you_."

The eighteen year old rolled her eyes. "i'm right behind you, I'd have to be deaf to _not _hear your conversation."

The blonde senior groaned as Tadashi nodded thoughtfully. "She's right you know. We _were_ talking pretty loudly."

Thomas huffed. "Whatever, dudes. I'm takin' a nap. Peace out and all that jazz." Without further ado, the senior who prefered surfing to being in school, laid down his head on his folded arms and in the matter of two minutes started snoring softly.

"Does… Does he always fall asleep that fast?" Morris whispered, eyes wide. "Tadashi nodded with a weary sigh.

"It makes it hard to have a study partner when he's always falling asleep at the drop of a hat." the Japanese-American said ruefully.

Morris smiled. "You really care about your education, don't you?"

Tadashi shrugged. "I've said it before, but it opens doors."

"We just need to escape the Hell known as High School." Morris agreed before adding, "Not many teenagers think about education the way you do, Tadashi."

The sixteen year old sighed and dragged a hand through his bare head. "I want to help a lot of people, but I can't do that where I am here." he looked up at Morris amd stuck out his hand. "I don't think we've ever been formally introduced, I'm Tadashi Hamada but… you probably already knew that though, huh?"

Morris took it firmly and shoot it with a bright grin. "Evelynn Morris. Most people just call me Eve."

Tadashi nodded, his grin matching hers. "Nice to meet you, Eve."

* * *

><p>Hiro was having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad, day.<p>

Instead of the preferred anonymity when he left the nurse's office to go to his next class after his lip had finally stopped bleeding, he was pelted with strange looks and questioning whispers.

"Think he'll do my homework for me?"

"What's a shrimp doing here?"

"Yeah! Go back to the sandbox, where you belong!"

"Quiet! Don't you realize who you're calling names at? That's Tadashi Hamada's little brother! If he hears you saying stuff like that, who knows what he'll invent to get revenge on you!"

"Like Hamada would care, he's probably called his brother worse things. What big brother doesn't?"

"I-I dunno man… Hamada's really protective. Don't stir up a hornets nest when you don't have someone to aim them at."

Hiro stumbled into class and slumped into a seat, burying his head in his arms with a weary groan.

"Hiro Hamada… tired of your fame already?" his science teacher questioned, raising an eyebrow as the twelve year old started.

"Uh… I n-never asked for Principal Henricks to do that, sir." Hiro stuttered, nerves shot to kingdom come and back as he fidgeted.

"Hmn…. well don't expect to get any special treatment here, Mr. Hamada. I had your brother for Physical Science and it was… how shall I put it?" his teacher, a balding man in his late fourties hmmed and hawwed for about a minute before drawling, "_Exasperating_."

Hiro blanched. "E-Exasperating, sir?" he asked for clarification.

But the science teacher moved on, turning around to write something on the board. "I pray you won't be so… difficult."

Hiro felt his face drain of color as he read the two words that had filled his nights with dread whenever Tadashi would come home with a tale of horror about highschool grade science classes: _Mr. Hanndelst._ With a groan, he buried his head into his arms again. It was official, he hated high school.

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><p><em><strong>AN:<strong>_Okay, first things first, sorry if this is crappy, I'm really tired so any mistakes I've made, blame the people in charge of Physical Education at my school... they're evil... Anyways! Big thanks to Blue Torpedo, Silverstream, BlueD, Highcrest Tomoko (was that OC what you meant? If not I'm supper sorry! But your request gave my muses ideas that scared the crap out of a friend so... double thanks are needed!), Miss Efffie T, and Baylee1100 for reviewing! You are all wonderful and I hope you've enjoyed this chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

_**Till I'm Gone**_

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><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

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><p>Hiro was exhausted. He hadn't run that far or hard since he was <em>five<em>. Who did those coaches think they were, athletes training for the _Olympics_? Knowing the statistics, the probability of that thought being true was at 99.45%.

"Hey Hiro, how's your first day been?" a familiar and welcome voice called, making Hiro start and look up to see his older brother slipping out of the crowd and approaching him.

"Oh you know…. just survived a murder attempt via weights in gym." Hiro grinned tiredly, fighting back a yawn. Tadashi winced in sympathy

"There's many reasons why we're into the sciences and that's one of them." the sixteen year old said, lightly patting Hiro on the back.

The twelve year old's sore muscles protested this form of affection and Hiro slowly let his breath out from behind gritted teeth.

"Can we go home now? I just wanna fall onto my bed and sleep the rest of the day away." Hiro entreeted his older brother who nodded, smiling softly.

"Sure thing, bonehead." Tadashi grinned, ruffling Hiro's sweaty hair, making the younger boy to squawk.

"Tadashi! My hair's off limits, remember!?"

The elder brother laughed, pushing down and off of Hiro's slightly damp head before walking in the direction of the car, leaving Hiro to scramble to catch up.

"Wait up! I'm exhausted remember!" the twelve year old called to his brother who whirled around with a gleeful gleam in his eye that instantly put Hiro on guard.

"You're exhausted, huh?" Tadashi said, grinning widely as he slowly stalked towards a quickly backpedalling Hiro. "Good thing you have me then!"

And then Tadashi surged forwards and grabbed Hiro arround the waist, earning a startled squawk from the twelve year old's lips.

"Tadashi! Let me go!" Hiro squirmed in his brother's grip, sneaker clad feet kicking the air as the elder brother hefted him up and over his shoulder like a stack of potatoes. "_Put me down! TADASHI!_"

Tadashi grinned, holding his squirming bundle firmly lest he drop his little brother.

"Nooope." he drawled.

Hiro let out a disgusted huff as he slumped into his brother's shoulder. "This is _embarassing_." the twelve year old grumbled, arms folded as best as his conditions could allow.

"You did say you were tried." Tadashi pointed out.

"But I didn't mean ffor you to pick me up and carry me like a little kid!" Hiro complained.

"Hiro." Tadashi deadpanned. "You _are _a little kid."

Hiro scowled and thwacked his brother in the ear, having tried to aim for the back of his brother's head instead.

"Shut up." the twelve year old grumbled.

Tadashi just laughed before he suddenly swung Hiro up and over his shoulder and to the ground, making Hiro yelp at the sudden movement.

It was then that Hiro realized that they were at Tadashi's car.

"Admit it Hiro, you had fun." Tadashi teased as he unlocked the car.

Hiro sulked as he slipped into the passenger seat. Dumping his backpack by his feet, he slumped back with a tired sigh. The boy listened with half lidded eyes as Tadashi sat his bookback in the back seat before slipping into the driver's seat and buckling himself in. With a quiet huff, Hiro reached for his own seatbelt.

"You ready to see what Aunt Cass has in store for us?" Tadashi asked as Hiro's seatbelt clicked.

"Hope it's hot wings!" Despite being bone dead tired, Hiro still managed to drag out one of his trademark eye crinkling grins.

Tadashi made a face. "The ones that make our faces numb? How about no thanks."

"You just can't take the heat!" Hiro crowed, slowly waking up in his excitement.

Tadashi grinned tolerantly as he shot back, "_You _just don't like Takoyaki."

"It has _fish _in it! _Yuck!_" Hiro stuck out his tongue childishly.

"It's octopus, Hiro. Not fish."

"Still tastes gross!"

"And _I _hate having my mouth numb for days afterwards!"

Hiro had a devious idea. "Fine! Let's have a bet!"

Tadashi shot his younger brother a wary but considering look. "A bet? What kind of bet?"

"If your dish gets served tonight, I'll… I'll take out the trash for a week, and I'll even clean the tables too!" Hiro promised, even though just the thought of taking out the trash plus cleaning the tables made him want to gag.

"And if _I _lose?" Tadashi prompted.

"You can clean my room for me!" Hiro grinned.

Tadashi let out a loud laugh and reached over to lightly shove at his younger brother's shoulder. "You really don't want to clean your room this week, do you."

"Sooo….? Do we have a deal?" Hiro prompted, ignoring the statement.

Tadashi laughed, shaking his head. "Sure, bonehead." he teased. Hiro grinned, leaning back.

* * *

><p>Aunt Cass and a few regulars jumped as the door was slammed open with a dual cry of "FIRST!"<p>

"_Boys_! What have I told you about slamming the door open!" Cass scolded and the two boys halted with guilty expressions on their faces.

"Sorry Aunt Cass…" the Hamada brothers chorused in near unison, both resolutely looking at their shoes.

Cass sighed and shook her auburn head. "Go wash up, dinner's on the table." she instructed and both boys ran to do her bidding, highschool having turned them into famished monsters known as teenagers.

"Thanks Aunt Cass!" Tadashi called as he rushed passed, Hiro just nodding has he hopped over the stall leading into the back. "Hiro! Don't jump that, you'll break it!"

"Remember our bet, Tadashi!" Hiro called back, unperturbed.

"And I thought you were exhausted!" Tadashi yelled, sliding to a halt so as to gently unlatch the door through the counter.

"The bet!" the younger Hamada remained steadfast in his reminder.

"I remember, Hiro!" Tadashi rolled his eyes and strolled into the family eating area when he noticed his little brother standing stock still, staring at the table. "...what's up?" he asked.

Hiro turned his head and started snickering, wordlessly pointing at the table where the debated dishes were set upon.

Tadashi snorted and that's what caused Hiro to collapse in a fit of laughter. The sixteen soon joined his brother on the floor, memories of earlier that morning filling his mind.

"We gotta start planning for our bets to not come true!"

Hiro giggled, nodding in agreement.

Aunt Cass popped her head into the room to see what all the commotion was about and smiled at the laughing boys. She had been worried, but seeing Hiro so obviously happy, she was sure he had a wonderful day.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN:<em> **So I've come to the conclusion that due to the age difference between me and my little brother I tend to act more like a second mother/big sister to him than I probably should, which makes Tadashi really sympathetic to me. I just know I'm going to cry so much tonight after my little brother's performance in Peter Pan (we're going to see BH6 afterwards and I'M SO EXCITED!) I'm so excited, that I rushed to do this chapter before I left. Hope you guys enjoy the fluff, because soon there's gonna be a time skip... *cue evil laughter*

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN #2<em>**: OH! I forgot! BIG THANKYOU'S GO TO *takes deep breath*: TheKreibae, Blue Torpedo, Miss Effie T, Snowflake, Highcrest Tomoko (phew!), Blue D, Silverstream, All Things Animated, Treasured Sanctum, and Chibi Atariel Tsukai!

*Is reeaaaaally spacey today...*


	5. Chapter 5

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

* * *

><p><span>Four months earlier...<span>

* * *

><p>Tadashi gripped the steering wheel tensely as he waited for Hiro to finally emerge from the school. It had been ten minutes since the bell had rung and released it's prisoners into the real world, and the sixteen year old was getting antsy.<p>

"C'mon Hiro…" he sighed to himself, tapping his fingers against the hard circle and glaring at nothing. "Of all days to be late, you chose _this_ one?"

The minutes passed slowly for Tadashi, and finally, the bushy mop of messy hair could be seen through the thinning crowd of milling high students. The twelve year old harshly bumped into someone walking the other way and a dark grimace filled the younger Hamada's face. Tadashi did a double take but the dark look had passed and Hiro's face was once again the blank neutral state it had been three months ago. The small highschool genius slipped past two burly seniors that Tadashi didn't know really well and then Hiro was at the curb, yanking open the door and slamming it shut.

Tadashi started the car. "Where were you? Didn't I tell you that Aunt Cass needs the car right after school?" he demanded of his little brother.

"'How was your day, Hiro?' 'Oh it was fine, _thanks for asking Tadashi._'" Hiro snarked grumpily. "And if you _must_ know, I was held up."

"Yeah, well don't let it happen again." Tadashi sighed, "And put on your seat belt. I don't want to have you go flying out the windshield."

"Yeah… whatever…" Hiro rolled his eyes but the click of his seatbelt told Tadashi that he'd done it anyways, despite the testy mood. The elder Hamada put the dark into drive and the vehicle rolled slowly into motion as Tadashi made sure to keep out of the way of any errant highschooler.

Hiro's phone buzzed, but Tadashi saw that it was being ignored. Almost a second later, it buzzed again.

After a few minutes of this pattern, Tadashi glanced over at his little brother in confusion. "Aren't you gonna answer those?" The sixteen year old asked, noting that Hiro hadn't even glanced at his phone.

"No." the twelve year old said, looking out at the passing scenery of San Fransokyo, and shoving his phone in his pockets. Tadashi found himself at a loss for what to say.

The rest of the drive home was spent in a heavy silence punctuated by Hiro's phone buzzing agitatedly in his pocket. Hiro never looked at any of the messages.

It would be four more months until Tadashi would understand the significance of this. And he would beat himself up for not noticing the problems while they were going on right under his nose, right up until the very moment he died.

But in this moment, Tadashi remained unaware, and so was not able to stop the events being put into motion. For now, all the sixteen year old knew was that Hiro was in a bad mood, and that made his already strained mood all the more ready to snap.

Tadashi pulled into an empty spot in the parking lot of the cafe and felt his eyebrow twitch as Hiro slammed his door on his way out.

"Hiro! Don't slam my car door!" he called, slipping out of the car.

"Technically, it's Aunt Cass' car! And you do it all the time!" Hiro shot back, a scowl on his face.

Grudgingly, Tadashi acknowledged his little brother's point. "But still..."

Hiro rolled his eyes and shouldered his back more securely. "Whatever, I'm heading in."

There was no cheerful bet, no trying to get out of chores, and no racing to see who would be first to the Cafe doors as Hiro whirled around and stomped away. Tadashi scowled and shook his head, locking the car doors before walking slowly after his little brother.

Already, Hiro had disappeared from view and when Tadashi walked in, one of the waitresses was comforting a sniffing Aunt Cass and the Regulars were staring at where the twelve year old had gone.

"Aunt Cass?" Tadashi tenatively asked, approaching his crying aunt. "What happened?"

"It's that boy! When I told him to not slam the door, he yelled that I wasn't his mother. Tadashi… I know growing up is hard but…" Aunt Cass sniffed again and Tadashi's frown deepened as he pulled Cass into a hug.

"I'll talk to him, Aunt Cass. That's no way he should be talking to you. You've been great to us." Tadashi said, pulling back. Aunt Cass sniffed and wiped away some stray tears.

"Go make yourself a cup of tea." Tadashi suggested a he headed towards the stairs. "I'll come down to help out once I've talked some sense into him! You have that meeting to go to, remember?"

"Oh! Thank you Tadashi!" Aunt Cass called, accepting a mug from one of the waiters who had watched to whole situation and had prepared a mug of tea to help. "Thank you Matthew." she sighed appreciatively.

The waiter known as Matthew nodded and went back to serving tables and getting orders with a quiet, "You're welcome." to his boss.

* * *

><p>Hiro knew he would be in deep trouble once Tadashi found out about how he'd blown up at Aunt Cass. And he felt horrible, but that didn't excuse the fact that <em>they didn't notice anything was wrong. <em>And he just - he couldn't - he just felt so - so - so - he didn't even know what he felt!

All he knew was that everyone was out to get him, practically from day one! Mr. Hanndelst always gave him more homework than was necessary, and always picked up on when Hiro was seriously confused. The PE department was screwed up and made them run a mile without consideration for the health of their students, like making sure everyone had stretched significantly enough to make sure no one tore ligaments. They _didn't do that_. And they pushed everyone so hard, that the bar for getting an A was so stressful, that Hiro had seen some students break down and cry after class in the locker room when it was announced that there would be a certain chain of exercises the next day.

The twelve year old would walk out of that gym class with more aches and bruises than when he got in. Not just from the work out, but from the boys as well. Especially the juniors. They'd shove him against the wall then laugh when he'd try to stand up for himself because - hey what can a _shrimp _do against tall boys who weigh more?

And they'd always do it when the coaches' backs were turned, so Hiro had no one to vouch for the harassment. And so, Hiro suffered it silently, feeling more and more bruised with every passing PE period.

He was tired. Tired of this but even with his great intellect, he didn't know what to do or how to stop it. A part of him kept saying that he just needed to tell someone about what was going on but that part was smothered by the rest of him that agreed with what everyone around him was saying. He _was _weird. He _was_ strange. He was _tiny_, he was _too young_, he was _socially unprepared_, he was a _wimp_. And that all culminated to one thing:

Hiro Hamada was a _freak_.

So if all of this was true, why did it hurt so much? Why did it feel like his heart was slowly being ripped to pieces over and over with no end in sight? Why was he always lashing out now, and finding it so hard to even _smile_?

Why did laughing hurt, when before… before he could laugh and feel so free that if he had wings, he could have flown away on a summer breeze? But now the summer winds had gone and brought in the chill of cold winter, and Hiro was left without even a jacket. With a whimper, the boy curled into a ball in the darkness of his half of the room facing the wall and feeling miserable and alone.

"Hiro?"

The younger Hamada stiffened as the light turned on with a click of the light switch and tensed even further as the bed dipped with the heavy presence of his older brother. Yet, despite that, Hiro didn't want to turn around to face Tadashi's disapproval. He clenched his eyes shut and felt hot tears leak down his face despite his instructing his body not to.

"Hiro, c'mon what's wrong? Why did you yell at Aunt Cass?" Tadashi asked, sounding concerned. Hiro said nothing, hoping that the older Hamada would just give up and leave already. He wanted to be alone (_No! Don't leave me! Stay and hug me like you did when we were younger! I can't trust myself to be alone… I don't… I don't want to be alone… Tadashi, help me…_).

"C'mon you bonehead, I know you're not asleep so cut it out already." Tadashi was sounding angry now. Hiro _really _didn't want to face Tadashi if he was angry… A sniffle escaped his notice and Hiro felt his chest freeze.

"...Hiro?" Tadashi was back to sounding worried again. Hiro decided that that was worse than Tadashi sounding angry but he just couldn't bring himself to look at his older brother.

"Tadashi… please just leave me alone…" Hiro found himself whispering. His heart protested what his mind was making him say. He wanted Tadashi to ignore his words and hug him until he just broke down and cried, telling Tadashi everything. He wanted that to happen but there was a process. It was a stupid process and Hiro hated himself for even doing it. But he had to see if Tadashi could really see through him like he used to.

"No. You and I are going to have a talk." Tadashi said firmly.

Hiro wanted to sit up and yell. "Just leave me _alone_ Tadashi." Wait! No, that wasn't what he wanted to say! _Stay! Read behind the lines Tasashi I know you're smart! _His heart screamed.

Too bad his heart and head weren't talking to eachother.

"_Fine_. Since you're so _dead set_ on being alone, I guess I'll chew you out later. Have fun with your pity party, _bonehead_." Tadashi said, and a coldness filled Hiro's chest as the weight disappeared from the bed. Hiro hadn't realized how comforting that dip had been until it was gone. The coldness spread out from his chest and creeped down into his stomach as the door slammed shut.

A trembling sob escaped his lips to which he slapped his hands over his mouth to muffle the ones that came after. Hiro thought he'd curled up as far as he could, but that turned out to an underestimation of his body's flexibility. With each muffled sob, Hiro curled tighter and tighter in on himself until his head was tucked firmly between his knees. Eventually, Hiro fell asleep like that, curled in fetal position.

No one knew, but that moment had planted a dark filthy seed. That seed, if left to flourish in the depths of the fertile darkness of Hiro's stressed and tired mind, would eventually grow into a dangerous, mind choking weed.

Tadashi had missed his chance to pluck the sprouting weed before it grew too dangerous and spurred Hiro into rash actions, but perhaps another would be able to halt the insideous weed known as depression…

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_Not a lot of showing what Hiro's going through school wise, just a showing of his emotional state. Hope you enjoyed this!

Anyways! _So, _I saw the movie on Friday, and I _loved _it! And, best of all, I found support for my headcannon (meaning, this fic once it's finished is totally in the bounds for cannon! THANK YOU LINES WITH DOUBLE MEANINGS!)! Now, I know how to end this fic when the time comes and it's gonna be mean~ :3

Also, I went to see it again yesterday with a friend and simply laughed at all the parts I cried at (because let's face it I cried like four times when I watched it on Friday so I had no more tears to cry at) and laughed as my friend cried at the end. Mel punched me in the shoulder for it but it was worth it. AND to make my fangirl heart explode even more, I'm seeing it a third time with a bigger group of friends on the 11th since we have school off that day. You can say that I'm obsessed and totally be right. BUT It'S SO GOOD EVERYONE SHOULD WATCH IT. And just... San Fransokyo... I just... _can I hop dimensions _and just _visit_ that place? Please? It's so _gorgeous_. Talk about scenery porn. I mean seriously, they went _all out_. And I love them for it.

Okay. Okay. Rant about the movie over. Now onto thanks! Big thank you's go to: TreasuredSanctum, Highcrest Tomoko, Snowflake, BlueD, Blue Torpedo, Chibi Atariel Tsukai, Anonymity is crucial, , DreamweaverAki, courtara, Wheee, Guest, Guest(#2 I'll presume?), and Spamano Love Child for their lovely reviewing! You guys nearly made me go into shock because I have _never _gotten this many reviews in such a little ammount of chapters. So thank you very much, I am totally blown away and in AWE at how everyone is enjoying a story that just started out as a headcannon! Thanks everyone, you're making my stay in the BH6 Fandom a really awesome one! Let's all create wonderful works together and build this fandom up to be really great!

With love,

Sora M.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG - joined chat at - 12:17 PM -<em>

* * *

><p><em>OG: Hi. Um… I'm Ordinary Gifted and I guess you're my partner?<em>

_OG: For the social project?_

_For school?_

_Um… hello?_

_Highcrest TOmoko - HT - joined chat at - 12:21 PM - _

_HT: HI! _

_OG: Oh wow. I wasn't expecting you to respond so fast. _

_HT: hehe… sorry… Anyways it's nice to meet you! You can call me Tomoko~_

_OG: Oh yeah, the anonymity thing. Well_

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG - is idle <em>-<em> 12:32 PM _-__

* * *

><p>Hiro let out a pained yelp as he was slammed into the wall. Sensing trouble, the twelve year old quickly stuck his already buzzing phone into his pocket.<p>

"Watch where you're going, _nerd_." one of the culprits sneered. Hiro scowled and rubbed his bruised and aching shoulder.

"What you looking at, _nerd_." the ringleader, the boy from Homeroom (what was his name? Andrews? That sounded right.) sneered.

Hiro hated it, but they terrified him. "Heh-hey… gu-guys… haven't yo… beaten me up enough for the week?" Hiro's voice squeaked in his terror and the three towering freshmen looked at each other and laughed. Hiro flinched at the noise, knowing he looked pathetic.

"Like you can stop us, _nerd_." Andrews sneered, and suddenly, Hiro found himself firmly in the grasp of Andrews' two little cronie side kicks and being dragged down the hall.

"Hey! No! Let me go! I haven't done any-" the twelve year old was cut off by a punch to the gut, leaving him bent over and gagging, his legs nearly collapsing from underneath him. The only reason why Hiro's face didn't greet the floor like an old excitable friend was the harsh grip held on his arms, making him cry out breathlessly as they were wrenched painfully backwards due to the first and third laws of physics.

"Don't you - _ow ow ow ow _- think that - _ow! _- this is a little _uncalled for_?" Hiro's voice raised in pitch until it broke at the end, leaving him shaking and his feet dragging.

"Be quiet _nerd_." one of the bullies sneered and Hiro let out a pained huff.

"Seriously? Isn't there some _other _derogatory word you could use to describe me?" Hiro asked sarcastically. Then the twelve year old looked up and realized just where they were heading.

"Oh no… _NO! Stop! Please, no!_" Hiro cried out, trying to get his feet under him so as to halt their trek towards one of the places he'd feared to be forced to go into ever since the beginning. A whimper escaped his lips as the sign for the boy's bathroom came into view, his breath catching in his throat.

Wildly, Hiro cast hs eyes about the hall, trying to see if there was anyone close enough to help him if he yelled. The hallway was crowded, and through the fog of panic in Hiro's mind, he cursed lunch hour.

Andrews pushed open the door leading into the boy's bathroom and Hiro found himself unable to breathe. Panic froze his chest despite how it spasmed while trying to get in enough air.

"So Nerd, ever consider taking a swim?" the fifteen year old freshman asked the struggling twelve year old, a twisted smirk on his face.

"Please dont!" Hiro begged, eyes wide with terror.

"Should've done our homework, _nerd._" the ringleader sneered, opening the handicapped stall.

"You earned that grade, Andrews!" Hiro gasped, sounding braver than he actually felt.

Andrews leaned close to Hiro's sweaty face. "Because of you, I'm having to retake the class." he hissed.

"You did nothing, you can't expect to pass a class by just skating through and doing no work at all-" Hiro's head snapped to the side, his cheek and jaw burning from the backhand. Andrews stepped back further into the bathroom stall.

"Let's take him swimming, guys."

A coldness filled Hiro's gut. "No!" he yelled, grunting as the second cronie hit him in the solar plexus, making him go limp as he gasped for breath.

Using the chance the temporary limpness bought them, the two mooks dragged him into the stall and Andrews shut and locked the door behind them all. By this time, Hiro was crying from the overwhelming terror he was feeling, and that made the bullies laugh.

"Aw… is the lill' nerd scawered?" one of his tormentors teased, just before Andrews nodded and suddenly Hiro found his arms pinned behind him and he was forced to his knees.

"I h-hate you." Hiro hissed up at his tormentors, tears of terror still streaming down his cheeks as he glared.

"Like you'll do anything about it, you wimp." Andrews laughed as his hand fisted around Hiro's shaggy hair. That was the only warning Hiro got before his head was completely submerged in the toilet water.

Air bubbles escaped his lips as he fought to not scream, his weak struggles growing weaker as his head grew light and fuzzy. His lungs were screaming in pain. He was yanked up and the twelve year old took a deep gasping breath, dark brown hair black and matted to his forehead. He was sobbing. "S-stop! No!" he cried out just before he was dunked back in.

The third and final time they did this, his tormentors flushed the toilet and held him there as he thrashed, choking and screaming into swirling water as it moved his soaking shaggy hair around. Just as the toilet was filling back up, he was yanked out, spluttering. Hiro's tormentors dumped him onto the ground, dripping and their fading laughter echoing in his ringing ears.

"Did you video it?" one of Andrews cronies asked eagerly and the ringleader's affirmative sent shockwaves of horror through Hiro's entire body.

The twelve year old shook violently, retching and curling in on himself as water and tears streamed down his face, content to remain in his position on the bathroom floor if it prevented him from being seen by the whole school populous.

"Post it onto your wall and see how many 'likes' it gets!"

Hiro felt sick as he heard them finally leave the bathroom. His phone buzzed again, and Hiro nearly jumped out of his skin. He'd forgotten about his social project partner…

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG- is idle <em>- <em>12:32 PM _-__

* * *

><p><em>HT: Hello? <em>

_HT: Hey… _

_HT: Um… _

_Are you okay? _

_Well obviously, you're not OK but… _

_is there something I can do? _

_Are you still there? _

_Gift (is it okay if I call you Gift), did I do something wrong?_

_HT: If so I'm REALLY sorry! _

_Ordinary Gifted - OG - is now active - 12:45 - _

_OG: I'M SO SORRY DON'T HATE ME_

_I JUST GOT DISTRACTED AND _

_CAUGHT YP_

_*UP _

_AGH… PHONE WHY NOW OF ALL TIMES?_

_And_

_OG: yeah, it's okay _

_to call me Gift _

_I mean_

_HT: YAY! haha! It's all good. I don't hate you._

_You seem really adorable!_

_OG: ...Adorable?_

_HT: Is that okay? If I call you adorable? _

_Because my first impression with you is that you're adorable. _

_And I tend to type what I think. _

_Sorry if it offended you._

_OG: oh no! I'm not offended, it just…_

_no one's really called me that except my aunt. So… I guess… it's okay? _

_HT: Well, I won't call you that all the time. I think Gift suits you better anyways! _

_OG: Tomoko, if you think that, then by all means keep calling me that!_

_HT: I think this is going to be a wonderful project. I'm glad I got partnered up with you, Gift._

* * *

><p>Hiro stared at the blurry screen, biting his lip as a warmth he hadn't felt in a long time filled his chest and a different type of tear streamed down his soaked face. With a small smile, Hiro went about typing his own reply.<p>

* * *

><p><em>OG: Yeah… I am too. Thanks, Tomoko. You have no idea how wonderful your words are to me. Anyways, I gotta go. Talk to you later? <em>

_HT: Sure! I can't wait! :D_

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG - left chat at - 1:12 PM - <em>

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN:<em> ** And that's the introduction of Eve to Hiro~! (I hope you don't mind Highcrest Tomoko that I used your username for Eve's chat handle, because you wanted to be inserted in... *sweatdrop*) And concerning fluffy Hamada bro fics after I'm done? I'd say I'll gladly do that because man do I need me some fluff after this fic is over! (It's been an emotional roller coaster let me tell you!) I hope I haven't made things worse for eveyone's emotional states...

Now, onto thank you's! Big thanks go to: DreamweaverAki, Aelita and Hiro, Highcrest Tomoko, BlueD, Guest, Silverstream (ah! oh no... I think I need to work on some flufflies, everyone's getting depressed! *flails*) , Snowflake, animebff13, Twinkles43534(is it bad that I read twinkies instead of twinkles for a minute?), LadyWendy101, Wheeee, Cartoonnerd13, TheShyShadow, darknessprincess1990, Escaping The Shadow, Person, BrokenWings2602, Treasured Sanctum, Belle, Poppes, Guest#2 (c'mere sweetie, lemme give you hugs, you poor thing. I hope I haven't made things worse for you... please tell me you're okay?), . (blinks, intresting name you have there friend, its very memorable), Chibi Atariel Tsukai, Koterre, aaaaand DisneyandWildKrattfangirl!

Sorry for answering some people and not others, just know I read ALL of your comments, I just don't have time to answer all of you! (TTATT)


	7. Chapter 7

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>

* * *

><p>Hiro's day - while brightened by the correspondence between himself and Tomoko - only got worse from lunch period onwards. He had rinsed out his toilet soaked hair in the sink, using liberal amounts of hand soap as a shampoo. He just knew hand soap was <em>not <em>good for his hair. He would prefer _not _having to get a buzz cut just because of some stupid hand soap causing clumps of hair to fall off. But the idea of walking around the school with hair that smelled like the underside of the bathroom would be even worse. So threatening his hair with crappy soap was basically the _only _option he had left.

He ducked underneath the hand drier and winced as hot air blew out and seemed to scorch his neck and fingers as he combed through his shaggy locks to make sure it didn't clump together in awkward places. Well… _more _than it did naturally.

Eventually though, when Hiro was relatively more dry than when he'd first started, he acknowledged that his attempts to stall himself had finally run out of steam. It was time to exit the relative safety of the bathroom, despite being the scene to a lost battle, in a war Hiro felt completely out matched and outnumbered in. This scene of defeat was asfer than the halls where most people had probably seen the video by now…

Hiro approached the door and froze, hand on the door handle as he fought an inner war with himself.

"C'mon, you big baby…" the twelve year old whispered to himself, biting his lip. "It's just words. People probably haven't even seen it yet."

A sick feeling in his stomach told him he was wrong.

* * *

><p>Thomas Mathews let out a startled snort as he was shaken out of his dozing state by the buzz of his phone. He leaned forwards, the front legs of his chair hitting the ground with a thump as he dug his phone from out of his pocket.<p>

It was from one of the little freshies he'd taken under his wing and corrupted when Tadashi wasn't looking and contained a link to a youtube video. A follow up message soon appeared: "Headphones necessary if Papa Hamada is nearby. Took the Rookie swimming." directly after Thomas entered his messaging app. The lazy seventeen year old raised an eyebrow at the caption then eyed a deeply engrossed Tadashi - who was cramming unnecessarily for an AP Anatomy test, weighing his options. He shrugged, and dug out his headphones. Nope. Wasn't gonna risk it.

Tadashi would murder him if he knew what he'd been up to on the internet. And no, he didn't mean his browser history - though he'd probably be murdered for that too. With a snap, he was connected to his phone and the sound was safely rerouted to his headphones. His thumb hovered over the link as his eyes did a final examination on the states of his fellow classmates, landing on Tadashi in particular. No one noticed the illegal usage of phone and likely no one would care, this period being Study Hall and full of nerds. They were all too busy cramming.

He tapped onto the link, the sound blaring in his ears too quiet for others to notice as his eyes were drawn to what his little proteges had titled it: 'GENIUS GOES FOR A SWIM'

His other blond eyebrow moved to join the one already raised. Well he didn't tutor them for their creativity… With a snort, the seventeen year old exited out of the app and went back to his message app.

With a press of his thumb he had copied the link and with a flick of his fingers he had sent the link zinging off into the school by way of his well established contacts.

In a moment of deliberation, Thomas entered the youtube app once more and went to the comments.

Fingers flying across his screen, he covertly typed his message. With barely a hesitation, his thumb pressed the post button, uploading his 'LOL what a loser' to the internet without any thought towards how it would effect the younger Hamada.

The kid was smart, he'd figure how to navigate highschool soon enough. The nails that stood up always got hammered down after all. You had to be _cool_.

Thomas put his phone away and leaned back in his chair, eyes observing the elder Hamada as he bent over his work and scribbled something before frowning and erasing it just frantically.

It had been touch and go with Tadashi, if Thomas was being honest with himself. The kid's saving grace was the natural charisma that practically all the girls gravitated towards. Didn't help that he was the "nice guy" type (whatever _that _meant). If it weren't for that and the fact that his science projects were something to be feared, had kept the elder from suffering the same fate as his little brother.

How they'd been able to keep the rumors and videos away from Tadashi was still a mystery to Thomas. It was probably that stupid obsession he had for college. When he got an idea that deeply hooked into him, there was no way to distract him from the tunnel vision. Thomas knew that from previous experiences with the Science Fairs that usually swamped the guy down even more. Those days were torture for the blonde, since Tadashi was usually the dude who funded his burrito raids.

Meh. Whatever, he was tired. Thinking wore him out. Why did the Hamadas even like it so much?

Five minutes later, Thomas was dead to the world once more, unaware of the hurt he would contribute to. Or at least, unthinking of the consequences. The universe was unsure of which was worse: willful blindness or unflattering stupidity in the face of human compassion.

* * *

><p>Hiro hated the whispers and laughter that followed him around now. He hated that he flinched whenever there was a loud noise like a locker slamming, terrified that his tormentors might shove him into one of them just for kicks and giggles. It had happened before. He was certain it would happen again.<p>

Hiro just wanted to curl up into a ball in a dark deserted corner and just sleep away _everything_. His heart ached, not in a physical way, but with a pain that couldn't be dulled by medicine. He was tired. But the day wasn't over, and Hiro couldn't sleep just yet. There was one more class he had to suffer through.

With a trembling sigh, Hiro glanced up at the sign that announced to the world the boy's locker room and hesitantly pushed open the door. Laughter and jeering rushed over his ears and he automatically flinched back, despite how he logically knew they weren't directed at him. In his experiences with high school, laughter _always _meant some form of imminent pain and so his body was now conditioned to react as if he could really avoid it.

Hiro let out a weary hum and quietly made his way to his locker, eyes firmly fixed on his feet. If he could just make it to his locker and get changed, he wouldn't have as many troubles.

He hoped.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_Hey guys, sorry for the late update (and the shortness of this chapter TTATT), but life kinda grabbed hold and gave me a firm uppercut to the face all the while yelling "NO". PE has been evil and exhausting (I need a Baymax so he can go tell the PE department that their workouts are too grueling and that we need to warm up better because one of the workouts actually left me in exhausted emotional tears and I don't cry over physical education...) and by the end of the day I didn't have the mental energy to sit down and write this, because lets face it, I'm getting depressed by writing this too.

Mental and physical exhaustion + depressing story = depressed author and unmotivated muses. So take heart, because you guys aren't alone in being depressed by the fandom. (Can I hug all of you? Because we just need a group hug. And fandom therapy.) (TTATT) I keep getting slammed by Hamada bro feels. Plus, a friend was having some troubles with an evil teacher so I needed to focus on motivation instead of the downward decline of Hiro's mental state. But, hey! Here's an update so you all know that I'm not dead, life is just being really mean right now. (XP)

Hopefully my muses will be back to their two day writing schedule now that a weekend is upon us! Yay for Fridays~!

Big thanks (and heated hugs via Baymax) go tooooo~: Treasured Sanctum, Snowflake, LadyWendy202, Phsychotic Fruitloop, Chibi Atariel Tsukai, darkprincess1990, Waterlilly49, BlueD, Highcrest Tomoko, Aleita and Hiro, DreamweaverAki, Sushi Hawkeye, Wheee, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, QueenPersphoneofHades, KanaMac, TheShyShadow, LizzyAnnG, aaaaaand Anymoose13! Thanks so much you guys, you are all wonderful people. I wish I could hug all of you and give you all hot chocolate in person. (TTATT)


	8. Chapter 8

Dear Guest (#2) and 'for gods sake',

For the sake of this response I will assume you are one person. _Till I'm Gone_ is a story about recovery. But for there to be something to recover from, something first must be lost. While we know what this arc will lead to (see first chapter), we did not know at that point what led this story's Hiro to attempt suicide. I felt it would be best to show this slow decent and the (eventual) recovery process instead of wrapping it up in a simple paragraph or more stating that that incident lead to the creation of Baymax. This story has touched people. People who have gone through similar things as this version of Hiro and have told me as such in their reviews. Some of what they have told me has brought me to tears at points. This story shows that they are not alone. That is the point of this story. And for you to say that I shouldn't write depressing things, when I myself also have been moved by the story and other outside sources, it is unbelievable. I respect your opinion but I ask you, will you stay with us until the end? Because this story at its core is about hope and enduring. It's about moving on and finding the strength to live again. It's not about the depression, though it may seem that I am harping on it all too much. It's about the recovery that happens afterwards. I know that some people aren't that lucky to have that recovery and support system. I write this because their stories need to be told too. So I ask again, dear Guest, will you stay until the end? Or will you hit the backspace and pretend you never read this? The choice, as always, is yours.

Yours truly, Sora Matasuki.

With that out of the way, enjoy the story!

* * *

><p><em><strong>Till I'm Gone<strong>_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Eight<strong>

* * *

><p>Tadashi glanced up from where he was leaning against the car and felt his breath catch in his throat and his heart stop in his chest.<p>

"Hiro!" he yelled, pushing off the car and racing to his little brother's staggering side. "What happened to you?!"

Hiro weakly grinned up at his older brother through a split lip, the left side of his face red and puffy. "Word to the wise, never get into a fight with a speeding soccer ball." The twelve year old gave a pained little laugh at his own wit.

Tadashi bent down and carefully cupped his little brother's bruising face in his bigger hands. Gently, he tilted Hiro's face from side to side, examining the place of injury with a scrutiny that would rival any medically trained doctor. He reached out a thin finger and lightly brushed against Hiro's swelling shut eyelid, tenderness in the touch and pouring out of his eyes as they bored into the twelve year old's face, observing his injuries.

Despite himself, Hiro felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes. Tadashi immediately noticed, his thumb brushing away a tear that had managed to squeeze out of his right eye.

"Hey… does this hurt?" the sixteen year old asked, concern in his voice.

"A little…" Hiro admitted sullenly, a weary smile stretching the scab forming on his lip.

Tadashi frowned and did a once over before letting go. "Looks like you earned yourself a black eye, kiddo."

Hiro rolled his good eye. "Yay… somethin' I always wanted…"

"C'mon bonehead, let's get you home so we can ice that battle wound of yours." With minute hesitation, Tadashi reached up and ruffled his little brother's fluffy hair.

"M'kay…" the twelve year old mumbled, leaning into Tadashi's touch and making the sixteen year old frown deeper in concern at the uncharacteristic action.

Taking his little brother's face in his hands once more, Tadshi peered even more closely at Hiro's half lidded eyes and at the pain held within those brown eyes. "Hiro, c'mon buddy… look at me. I need to check that you don't have a concussion from being hit in the head."

Hiro let out a token mumble of protest but looked at his brother with an exaggeratedly wide eyed look, opening them as far as they could go. He winced as his swelling left eye twinged painfully at the action.

Tadashi peered into his little brother's wide eyes as he ignored the sass he was given, eyes flickering to observe every minute flash of pain that filtered through Hiro's face. With a sigh of relief, the sixteen year old found nothing abnormal with the younger Hamada's pupils.

"Well, looks like all you have is a blooming black eye, not a concussion like I feared." Tadashi grinned, before gently maneuvering his little brother into a hug, careful to have the right side of Hiro's face pressed against his chest.

"Mph! _Tadashi!_" Hiro spluttered, his protest muffled by his elder brother's shirt as he flailed slightly in surprise before settling in Tadashi's arms completely self conscious of the fact that the _whole school _was able to see them getting _mushy_. "_Tadashi…_ I'm…. I'm _okay_."

Tadashi put his chin on top of Hiro's fluffy head. "They shouldn't have hit you in the face with that ball, bonehead. When I find out who hurt you I'll -"

Hiro pulled out of the hug, rolling his good eye before giving his older brother a sceptical look. "You'll what? Tadashi, it was an accident. I'm _okay_. Stuff like this happens." He leaned to the right slightly, putting his weight on one of his feet with his arms dangling. "Esssspecially when the guys get ahold of a soccer ball." Hiro's arms crossed over his midsection as he slightly hunched in on himself. "Man… they're _real_ _crazy_ about their sports… A… little too crazy…"

Tadashi grumbled but reached up to ruffle Hiro's fluffy hair once more. "Still, those guys should apologize to you. _No one_ hurts my otouto and gets away with it."

Tadashi never saw the way Hiro froze with a pained grimace as the sixteen year old had already turned around to get in the car, having deemed the conversation over. Hiro's heart sunk as he heard the door slam shut, only to brighten slightly when his older brother's head popped out of the window, looking back at him.

"Hiro! You coming? We need to get you some ice for the bruising!"

Hiro shook himself and gave a pained grin that Tadashi attributed to the bruising on his face.

"Just hold your horses Tadashi, I'm _coming_!" Hiro called before walking over to the passenger side. He slid into the passenger seat, backpack settling near his feet as he slammed the door. "Let's go!" he said, dramatically pointing forwards and making Tadashi laugh as he started the car.

"As you wish, bonehead." Tadashi said easily.

* * *

><p>Hiro lay on his bed, staring up at the darkened ceiling as he pressed a ice pack wrapped in a towel against his eye. A frown claimed the form of his lips as he reflected on what had happened during PE.<p>

While what he had told Tadashi about the source of his injuries were true, the intentions behind the ball to the face were not. Hiro knew it hadn't been an accident the ball had been sent careening to his face. He'd seen the smirk a split second before the impact. That smile had honestly scared Hiro, had jolted his heart to attempt gymnastics and fail miserably.

He remembered the way his head had snapped sideways and back a bit from the force of impact and then how he had fallen over from the shock of it. Hiro had been lucky to have fallen forwards onto the grass and not backwards onto the asphalt.

Hiro's frown grew deeper as his phone's timer chimed, signalling the end of his ten minutes. Stupid bullies. Now he was here at home treating his own stupid black eye, having to put an icepack on his face in ten minute cycles.

Another thing that bothered Hiro was his inability to man up and tell Tadashi what was going on in his life. It was stupid! Logically, the twelve year old knew that it would be best for Tadashi to be aware of what was going on and all but something inside him just wouldn't let him!

_What if Tadashi finds out and he thinks I'm pathetic_? Hiro questioned to himself and the thought made him tremble and tears prick at the corners of his eyes again. If that were to happen, it would be too much. Not when everyone around him was saying such horrible things… Things he was starting to believe.

Then another thought struck him. _What if Tadashi already knows, and those words were just for show? _His trembling turned into full on shudders as Hiro choked down a sob. _What if Tadashi really doesn't care? Is that why they got so bold as to shove my head in the toilet and _film _it? _With shaking hands, Hiro covered his mouth to muffle his cries as the dark thoughts kept coming.

_Tadashi doesn't care. Tadashi doesn't care. Tadashi's never going to help. He doesn't care. He thinks I'm pathetic. He thinks I'm a worthless know it all. He probably _hates _me. He… _

With a whimper, Hiro curled up on his right side and let the tears fall.

He fell asleep to the thoughts of _Tadashi never cared, _rolling around in his head.

* * *

><p>"Hey Tadashi, can you go take this up to Hiro? I know he's had a rough day so they're his favorites."<p>

Tadashi looked up from the table he'd been cleaning at Aunt Cass' request and nodded with a grin as his eyes took in the steaming plate of Hiro's favorite type of hot wings in her hands. "Sure Aunt Cass. Just let me finish wiping down this table then I'll take it up."

Aunt Cass sighed gratefully, setting the dish down on an unoccupied table for him to pick up when he was finished. "Thank you, you're an angel Tadashi."

Tadashi grinned at the praise then focused on wiping the last bits of crumbs off the table that the previous customer had left. Once that was finished he dumped the dirty rag into the box full of dirty dishes. With that secured to his hip, Tadashi grabbed the plate of hot wings in his free hand and trooped off to the kitchen to dump his first load off.

Once the box full of dirty dishes was put safely onto the counter, Tadashi peeled off the black apron and headed towards where the stairs were located.

He jumped up them two at a time, careful not to spill his little brother's dinner as he did so and paused as he noticed the darkened lights. With a rueful smile and a shake of his head he crept into the room as he noticed the blinds were drawn.

"Oh Hiro…" Tadashi sighed, setting the food down on the desk as he saw his little brother had fallen asleep. Walking over, Tadashi sat down on the edge of the bed and noticed how his little brother's phone was chiming in an alarm, the icepack not on his face.

Reaching over, Tadashi grabbed the discarded icepack and gently put it on the bruise, putting a soothing hand on the small of Hiro's back between his shoulderblades as the twelve year old stirred with a murmured protest.

"Shh… I'm here, otouto, I'm not gonna hurt you. Just rest. I'll take over for now." Tadashi whispered into Hiro's ear. The boy whined slightly before snuggling deeper into his pillow. Tadashi stood up and observed the fact that Hiro had left his shoes on. With a rueful sigh, Tadashi set to work on getting his little brother out of them so he could put the covers over him without getting anything dirty.

That done, Tadashi gently lifted his little brother up, shooshing him softly as the youth stirred with a mumbled protest once more. "I've got you, kiddo…"

"Mhph…" Hiro sighed quietly, snuggling into Tadashi's arm as the sixteen year old dug around to pull the covers back, the twelve year old being awkwardly propped up in a curled position by the elder's leg as he jammed it against the bed frame to keep it at the right angle.

"Alright… here we go…" Tadashi sighed as he laid his brother down on his uninjured side, pulling up the covers as he placed the towel wrapped ice pack on the bruise once more.

Tadashi sat down on the bed and leaned over to kiss the crown of Hiro's head. "Love you kiddo…" he murmured sadly as he set the timer to sound off at a softer tone.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_Hey guys! I'm surprised I pumped this out as fast as I did! Also, be still my rapidly beating heart! We've broken 100 reviews! I'm floored! This has _never _happened to me before! Thank you all so much! I've never expected for my small insignificant headcannon to get noticed like it has! So thank you for sticking with me!

The biggest "thank yous" gooooo tooooo: Snowflake, Esax12x, Guest, umdiddle, Gazingatmoons, Highcrest Tomoko, darknessprincess1990, Hiro Hamada (aaaye see what you did there~), BlueD, DreamweaverAki, waterlilly49, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, LizzyAnnG, KanaMac, Lappamara, Devil Red, Wheee, Chibi Atriel Tsukai, Silverstream, LadyWendy202, Ellamena, Ajhappyfeet, aaaand Bighero6lover (you got your wish my friend XD)!

SERIOUSLY THOUGH, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! YOU ALL ARE AWESOME! You've all made my day so much happier in comparison to yesterday, so THANK YOU! Thank you soo much for your sweet words and wonderful feedback! (...I dare say I'm rather addicted to them now...)

*sends out hugs and cookies to everyone* Thank you again for making my stay here in the fandom so wonderful!


	9. Chapter 9

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Nine<strong>

* * *

><p>"Why is it -" Hiro let out a grunt as he grumbled to himself in the relative darkness, "-that it's <em>always <em>PE?!"

The twelve year old glared at the front of the locker where the light from the slanted slats filtered in. It just had to be his luck that the athlete's lockers were big enough to fit _him _too. Hiro let out a frustrated sigh and took in a deep breath. The boy grimaced as the faint smell of sweaty socks and metal filled his nose, leaving a bad taste in his mouth.

With a groan, the twelve year old let his head hit the back of the metal box he was in, careful not to hit the hooks that were just above him. This was so stupid. Who got shoved into lockers? Oh wait. It was him. _He _was the idiot who thought high school would be better for his _precious_ _intellect_. ...What a joke.

Hiro let his head hit the wall a few more times, a scowl on his face. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Everything was so _stupid_. Stupid smell, stupid space, stupid bullies, stupid _him!_

His pocket buzzed and Hiro flinched, torn between peeking at it or ignoring it. The taunting had escalated in the weeks of the social project, spreading from the now infamous video to infect his social page. Now, whenever his phone buzzed, he was unsure if it was Tomoko or one of his anonymous tormentors. His excitement for the project had waned, faded like an old t-shirt bleached by the sun.

Hiro took in another breath of metal and sweaty socks and grimaced again. He'd be stuck in here a while, might as well see if it was Tomoko or not.

* * *

><p>Eve let out a sigh as she tossed her bag onto her bedroom floor, the books held within thudding loudly and making the tired senior wince at the noise. She hoped she didn't wake up the cranky neighbor in the next apartment down with that thump…<p>

The eighteen year old shrugged and flopped onto her bed. She was too exhausted to care for what a cranky old man would say to her parents. It wasn't her fault that he was a light sleeper.

Just as Eve was going to drift off completely into her exhausted doze, a thought struck her. She hadn't talked to Gift yet!

The eighteen year old promptly rolled over onto her side and fell off the bed with a yelp. A searching hand reached up and felt around her dresser. Finding the object that felt most like her phone, the girl grabbed her original target and held it to her face, wincing at the brightness.

"Okay Gift… let's see how you're doing today…" she muttered once the blinding light had been dimmed to a manageable level, logging herself into her account.

Gift had just barely built up the courage to tell her a bit more about himself - within the bounds of the anonymity of course, she knew he wasn't telling her _everything _- but it was awesome to see how far they'd come from the beginning!

Where once it was an awkward one sided blast of talking on her part, was now hour long conversations! Sometimes, Eve wasn't able to even get a word in as Gift rambled on and on about a project he wanted to do. The eighteen year old loved every minute that her mysterious partner opened up to talk about things _he _was interested in!

* * *

><p><em>Highcrest Tomoko - HT - joined chat at - 2:57 PM -<em>

* * *

><p><em>HT: Hey Gift! <em>

_Just wanted to pop in and say hello, since we haven't talked yet today! _

_HT: How are you? :D_

* * *

><p><em>OrdinaryGifted - OG - joined chat at -3:02 PM -<em>

* * *

><p><em>OG: Cab i just day<em>

_Ugh. _

_*can I just **SAY_

_OG: that I HATE school right now? _

_HT: D: oh no! What's wrong, Gift!? D: D: _

_OG: I just _

_I'm not_

_People are just_

_OG: I'm not having a good day, that's all. :/ _

_HT: Oh no… :( I'm sorry, Gift. Do you want to talk about it? _

_OG: no… not really…_

_how are YOU, Tomoko? _

Eve frowned at her phone, having rolled onto her stomach by now. Her legs idly went up and down as she thought about how cagey Gift was being today. Her eyes narrowed as she nibbled on her lower lip.

A thought struck her and she let her fingers fly across the screen as she typed her reply. Best to answer honestly with Gift.

_HT: I had to go home early due to a doctor's appointment that got canceled XP but other than that I'm fine. :D _

_HT: But seriously, Gift_

_are you okay? _

There was a long pause and Eve bit down harder on her lip, nearly drawing blood. C'mon _Gift… please be okay…_ she begged in her mind.

The ping of her phone alerted her to his reply.

_OG: Do you really want me to answer that? _

_HT: Of course! I'm your friend Gift! You can tell me anything if you're comfortable with it!_

_If you really don't want to say anything, I'll just drop it! You just tell me if you're uncomfortable! I'm just worried about you though… You don't seem very happy today. _

_OG: I'm not. _

Eve felt her brow furrow as she tilted her head quizzically at her phone, despite knowing how Gift wouldn't see it.

_HT: ….You're not happy? _

_Or are you not okay? _

_OG: Yes. _

_No._

_I mean_

_both. _

_Ugh. I don't know okay? I'm just really pissed off and I hate the smell of sweaty socks. _

Eve felt a bewildered laugh escape her lips. What did sweaty socks have to do with anything?

_HT: Sweaty socks? What? _

_OG: They stink. Do ANY of these athletes wash their clothes during the weekend?! _

_Because if they do, their washing machines stink. _

_Pun intended. _

_Ugh. _

_I _

_hate_

_school. _

Was… Gift still in school? Hadn't school gotten out already? Eve was confused.

_HT: Gift, are you still in school? Like as in class?_

_OG: Yes and no. I'm not supposed to even be in here! _

_HT: What are you even doing?_

_OG: Picking a lock. _

Eve choked on her spit.

_HT: "Picking a lock"?! Gift what are you even doing!? _

_OG: Like I said_

"_picking a lock." _

_C'mon, Tomoko this isn't Supersymmetric Quantum Mechanics. _

_HT: Why are you picking a lock!? _

_OG: Because someone decided it would be a good idea to shove me into one of the athlete's lockers. _

_And lock it. _

_I mean_

_I'm small_

_but - this shouldn't happen! On principle! _

_People can be such neanderthals sometimes. _

_no. not sometimes_

_It's ALL the time. _

_Have I mentioned that I utterly DESPISE highschool?_

Eve stared at her phone in horror. Someone had shoved Gift into a locker and _locked _it?! But… but… her partner was such a nice person! Why would anyone do that?!

_OG: HA! YES!_

_Foul fiend of the sweaty underworld_

_I have conquered thy prison, have at thee _

_and let me reclaim my freedom! _

_HT: You got out? That's great! _

_Now you can tell a teacher! _

_OG: What!? _

_No! I can't tell a teacher! That'll only make it worse! _

_HT: Trust me Gift, they can put a stop to people bullying you! _

_OG: No, Tomoko. Trust ME_ _people like them, they WONT STOP just because a teacher told them not to! They'll find a way to make my life a living Hell on earth! It will NEVER STOP. Not until they graduate._

_Or I do. _

_Whichever comes first. _

_Because believe me when I say this but_

_I could be out of here if I put my brains to it. I just_

_I want to stay with my brother. For a year at least. But… _

_that plan might just be doomed to failure because he's graduating and I… _

_I think_

_I gotta go. _

_HT: GIFT WAIT! What about your brother? _

_OG: I think he hates me OK? _

_OrdinaryGifted - OG - has left the chat at - 3:34 PM - _

_HT: Gift… _

_Highcrest Tomoko - HT - has left the chat at - 3:40 PM - _

Eve let out a groan and flopped onto the floor, a frown on her face. She hated this anonymity thing they were doing. She couldn't hunt down Gift's brother and give him a stern talking to when she didn't even know Gift's _name _now could she?!

This project wasn't looking to be as fun as she thought it would. Not like she expected it to be butterflies and rainbows but still…

Poor Gift… what did his brother do to him?

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_And we're back and ready for action! Sorry for the delay guys! My brain decided to impersonate Baymax with a low battery and I couldn't focus on finishing this chapter until today. (muses why are you so fickle?)

Anyways! HOLY CRAP GUYS! 30+ reviews on chapter 8? I'm blown away! Thank you so much! (I'm still not desensitized to mass feedback, can you tell lol)

BIIIIIIG thanks go tooooooooooooooo: waterlilly49, Esax12x, LizzyAnnG, DreamweaverAki, Guest(#1), Lost-Rememberance (Thanks so much for your encouraging words!), TheKreibae (hugs), TreasuredSanctum, Silverstream, MimosaWisteria, LadyWendy202, BlueD, themysteriousartist, ArianandXia, Highcrest Tomoko, Madness Shared, Guest (#2 and I'm glad you can relate, (sad you're able to too TTATT)), darknessprinces1990, Ellamena, HiroHamada14, wellthen44, Atariel Tsukai, Ajhappyfeet, Sabeloid, Weakness Hunter, Guest (#3 goodness there's a lot of you this chapter!), Big hero 6 lover, LordCameronAndtheFlamingPoops, Thalia Marie Grace, fandombunny, AwaitTheRise, TheShyShaow, jeasusfreak200, The-Shepherd's-Daughter (Indeed I am planning a recovery arc, it's just that this arc is needing a bit of building up before the crash… The arc is almost finished, I'll have you know…), Wheee, Guest (#4), Sketchy (*tosses a party hat and a huge box full of delicious desserts into your lap* *pulls a party popper and confettie goes flying* YAY for being depression free! You deserve a million hugs! *glomps*), Guest (#5), CrazyCartoonistOtaku, Wheee ( hello again! *repairs refresh button* be careful, we need that ;D), aaaaand psychedelicLights!

*falls over, fingers twitching*

*pops back up*

Seriously guys, I'm blown away by all your feedback! (still! I can barely believe it!) thanks so much! I love you all! *Sends out cake and party poppers alongside tissues if necessary and poofs out like a ninja*


	10. Chapter 10

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Ten<strong>

* * *

><p>Tadashi glanced up at the clock and bit his lip in his concentration. Just one more minute until time would be up and he couldn't change any of his answers anymore. Was he certain that he'd gotten the right ones? The meticulous sixteen year old glanced over his answers and nodded contemplatively to himself then paused. He'd triple checked twice, so he was pretty sure that they were all good but still… maybe one more check would ease his rushing mind…<p>

"Time's up! Pencils down, flip your test over!" Their science teacher called out, breaking Tadashi out of his trail of thought.

Groans floated up around the classroom as the rustle of papers flooded the sixteen year old's ears. Tadashi breathed out slowly through his nose, settling his rapidly beating heart as he closed his eyes for a brief moment. A sharp prick at the back of his neck caused him to reopen his brown eyes and glance back, confusion clear on his face.

Eve grimaced behind him with an apologetic air and the thin stack of tests she had used to poke him flopped towards the ground in her hand. With a soul deep sigh Tadashi turned around and grabbed the papers from her and placed his own test on top before sending the stack onwards.

That done and over with, Tadashi flopped back in his seat and put his head in his arms, trying to block out the murmur of his fellow students talking about the test and how they did. Dread churned in his gut and the sixteen year old bit his lip. Had he gotten his answers right? He didn't know, he hadn't been able to check his answers one last time!

Internally, his mind was screaming. What if he got them all wrong? He'd studied so hard but what if it was all for nothing?! Then he wouldn't be able to find a great college and be able to change the world of medical science!

Tadashi knew these thoughts were irrational but it didn't stop the anxiety from resurfacing. Just like what happened after every test ever since he figured out that his GPA affected his career later on in life. How it figured into his acceptance into a college at all.

"Hey."

Tadashi looked up and glanced over at Eve who was giving him a serious look.

"Yeah?" he tried to act all casual but by the expression on her face, he knew she wasn't fooled.

"You okay?" Eve asked and Tadashi gave her a weak grin.

"Yeah, I'm okay." he sent her a thumbs up in conjunction with his words.

She stood up with a groan, leaning back. Tadashi heard several vertebrae pop and fought back a wince. As soon as she straightened, Eve gave the sixteen year old an unconvinced look. "You're over thinking your answers on that test. Stop it!" she flashed him a grin right after. "You're the top of the class, you don't need to have a panic attack."

Tadashi choked.

"Anyways, I found this in the counselor's office, and I thought of you. You're into technology right?" she continued, grabbing something from her binder and sliding it onto his desk. From the sound of it, it was some sort of sleek paper. Tadashi glanced down and felt his eyebrows crease.

It was a brochure for a college. It was of a black, green and white color scheme and in the corner was the crest. Tadashi's breath caught in his throat. _San Fransokyo Institute of Technology_.

"Unbelieveable…" he murmured, deft fingers flipping through the pages. "But it's super exclusive, Eve, I don't know - "

Eve slapped a hand over his mouth. "Nope! Not gonna let you talk yourself into doubting yourself! You - " Here she poked him in the chest. "-are a great inventor. Look, there's a science exhibition where anyone can enter and the ones with the most impressive tech get in on scholarship!"

Tadashi opened his mouth to speak but bit on his lip when Eve glared at him, hands on hips.

"Tadashi, look. The whole school is in awe of your tech. Think of where you could go with your gifts if you went there!"

"I… I'll think about it." Tadashi finally hedged, eyes traveling back down to the brochure. "I'll definitely think about it."

Eve nodded, a grin spreading across her face. "Good! Because I'm sick and tired of seeing you implode whenever there's a test!"

Tadashi tossed what he knew to be an impressive puppy dog face at her. "I don't implode!"

"Yeah, Tadashi, you do." Eve deadpanned.

Tadashi pouted.

* * *

><p>The thought of entering the science exhibition wouldn't leave his mind. It had opened the doors of his mind and had strolled right in. The Idea perfectly at home with his chaotic thoughts and had planted itself firmly in an unused corner of his brain, refusing to budge.<p>

It poked and prodded at him while he was driving his strangely silent little brother home. It threw stones at the field of grazing science equations and caused them all to run around in a noisy ruckus, had run through the markets of his random ordinary thoughts and had screamed at the top of it's lungs "LET'S DO SCIENCE, YEAH!" and caused the thoughts dealing with hunger and thirst to throw up their hands and leave in a huff, heavily offended.

But now, when push came to shove, the Idea had become perfectly mute when enquiring thoughts asked it what it wanted to do. Sometimes it would cough up a sliver but was mercilessly pounded by the thoughts of Reason and Practicality. The Idea couldn't be unrealistic, it had to be something that would both _WOW _the judges and be able to function in it's role.

So the random Idea for giving Mochi rocket shoes was out. Wasn't practical enough, though Tadashi knew Hiro - if given the chance - would pounce on the idea and claim it for his own. Reason and Practicality alongside a healthy dose of Protective Older Brother Instinct made him erase it entirely.

The same process occurred with a shrinking ray, this time the thoughts screaming at him that it was a Bad Idea. Maybe he could try a portable healthcare robot? The thoughts paused and considered the Idea. They Shrugged.

Tadashi wanted to pull out his hair and slam his face into his keyboard. Or tablet. Even the desk would suffice so long as it got the frustration out of his system. Why was brainstorming ideas for inventions so _hard?! _And _exhausting?_

A yawn escaped his mouth but Tadashi stifled it with a scowl. No. He had to come up with something! Especially if he wanted to beat this year's deadline! He _had _to go to this school.

He'd researched it up and down and sideways till kingdom come and the overarching consensus was that the Sanfransokyo Institute of Technology was _his kind of school_.

Tadashi had never felt such a drive to go to something before in his life and this was from the kid who spouted out that college was a gateway to _everything_. He had to go here. He had to! He had to go to-

* * *

><p>"Tadashi? I need to tell you something, do you have a mom-" Hiro stopped in the doorway, eyes trained on the slumped over form of his older brother, who was - despite the glare of the monitor - deeply asleep. "...Oh." the twelve year old finished, not even bothering with finishing the word he'd started as a dark feeling stirred in his stomach.<p>

Brown eyes darkened with the tint of depression took in the sketches on the screen and all of the crumpled up papers scattered on the desk. They took in the rise and fall of broad shoulders as the elder Hamada breathed softly, deeply, and how sleep softened the stressed lines on the sixteen year old's youthful face.

Then the youngest Hamada turned away and started searching. After a few minutes had passed, Hiro found what he was looking for and tip toed to his older brother's side. Standing about a foot away, the youth found himself hesitating, the tan blanket clenched in his hands dangling and really touching the floor. If he put the blanket on, would he wake up?

Did he really want his brother to wake up? After a few moments of consideration, Hiro shook his head in reply to his own question. No… he didn't really want to wake up Tadashi. But still… he wanted… he wanted his older brother to hug him. To cuddle him like when they were both younger and when just a scraped knee would be enough to get hugs and kisses and a special hair ruffle, despite all the squirming he'd put up.

But… the twelve year old didn't want to be a bother… Tadashi probably hated him anyways. Why would he want to give his pathetic little brother a hug? Freaks didn't deserve hugs. They didn't deserve anything. Any yet… and yet…

Hiro put the tan felt blanket over his big brother's shoulders, smoothing it gently when it folded up on itself. Taking a deep breath, Hiro rested his forehead on Tadashi's back.

"Tadashi… I need you…" he whispered, tears welling up in his eyes as he spoke, "I can't… I don't know what to do. Or what to feel. Sometimes I wonder what it's like to not have to breathe. I just… I need… I need help. I know I do but I can't ask for it. I don't know why but something stops me everytime I try. I can't…" his voice cracked as the tears fell down his cheeks. "I'm not strong like you, Tadashi. I'm not strong at all and I don't know why you and Aunt Cass can't hear it when I'm just _screaming inside. _I'm screaming and I don't know how to stop it. Everything hurts and my heart hurts the most. I need you Tadashi. I'm so alone."

Hiro slowly moved away, hands over his mouth as the tears streamed down and his shoulders shook. "I'm so alone and no one notices." he sobbed in a whisper. "I can't… I can't… I miss you Tadashi. I… I miss you _so much_ even though you're here right infront of me."

Tadashi didn't move, his shoulders rising and falling with each gentle breath and Hiro sunk to the floor. Tadashi hadn't woken up. Hadn't heard anything.

Hiro was still so alone in a crowd. And it hurt. His heart hurt. The tears wouldn't stop falling.

Tadashi slept on.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:<strong> _Hey guys! Sora here! Happy holidays if you live in the USA (and if there's any other holidays occurring within the readerbase~)! I pushed and prodded at my muses until the relented so you'd get this chapter before I went on vacation to see family for Thanksgiving (hallelujah for Fall break! A whole week off school and away from evil PE! *steadily ignores evil book we have to read for English*), and since I'm uncertain if I'll be able to have access to a computer to type up the next few chapters, I wanted this one out STAT. XD

OH! Also, since there's some confusion on if Eve is an OC or not, let me clarifiy that Eve _IS _an OC (she was suggested/sorta requested by Highcrest Tomoko and the Muses liked the idea of a friend for Hiro and ran with it) and NOT GoGo. Even though she has spunk like GoGo. They're different characters. Completely different characters.

Anyways that's out of the way, onto thanks! Big thankyous go to:

waterlilly49, pychedelicLights, Atariel Tsukai, LadyWendy202, MimosaWisteria, Purpalz Miner, GBuscusDouglass, DreamweaverAki, KanaMac, Crystallized-CloudCatcher, Highcrest Tomoko, seems-pretty-legit, Guest (#1), wellthen44, teengens, Guest (#2), Third Comment, LordCameronAndTheFlamingPoops, regularshow565, ArianandXia, Wheee, Disneynerdbh6, LizzyAnnG, SilverKitsune1, TheShyShadow, Madness Shared, TheShyShadow (hello again yes I know that feeling, here's an update for you :3)

Happy Holidays everyone! *hands out tissues and turkey shaped sugar cookies covered in orange sprinkles*


	11. Chapter 11

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki <em>

* * *

><p><em>Chapter Eleven<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Two months...<strong>

* * *

><p>Eve hummed to herself as she slipped into the warmth of the apartment. "I'm home!" She called into the homey symphony that was coming from the kitchen.<p>

"Welcome home, sweetheart!" Her mother called, the sounds of pots and pans clanging pausing momentarily before starting up again. The eighteen year old smiled and headed over to her room to put away her bags.

"Eve, darling can you come here for a minute?"

Eve paused in her tracks, her eyes widening. Dad was home? Why was he home so early? Has something happened on the base?

"Sure Dad! What's up?" She called, putting her bags down in the hallway and heading towards the dining area that was in conjunction with the tiny kitchen.

The sounds of her mother puttering away near the sink had faded away into an almost eerie silence. Eve quickened her pace to round the hall corner.

Her father was leaning against the counter, salt and pepper hair wearing thin near the top of his head, icy blue eyes looking worn and serious as they gazed at the painting of the San Fransokyo Golden Gate Bridge that hung on the wall.

"Soo..." Eve awkwardly shrugged and put her hands into her jacket pockets. "What's goin' on, Dad?"

The elder Morris turned to his only child. "Honey... This might come to a shock to you. How about you sit down."

Eve shrugged, leaning against the wall. "I can handle it."

Her father didn't look convinced but began with a grave sigh, "I've been deployed, Evelynn. We're moving."

Eve sat down on the tile floor with a thump.

* * *

><p>Hiro stared down at his phone, his breath catching in his throat. The letters on the screen didn't change. They remained starkly black against a white background, bold in their simple coding and defiant to his desperate wishes.<p>

Two words, two very simple words, were causing his entire world to crash down around his ears.

Shaking fingers typed out the only question on repeat in his suddenly blank mind.

_OG: you're what_

There is a long pause and in that pause his breath starts to come in shorter increments and his heart starts pounding in his throat. His eyes are prickling painfully at the corners.

_HT: I'm so sorry Gift. _

_I know that this is hard to hear but I am moving. I can't stop it. We'll be heading to Okinawa in a month. My dad was deployed there and it's easier on everyone if we all go with him. Apparently a house has already been picked out and everything._

_OG: but_

_I won't be able to meet _

_you! _

_This isn't fair Tomoko! You're _

_The only friend I have! _

_HT: I know Gift. Believe me I know. I'm so sorry that we're not gonna be able to finish the project together. But we can still be friends, even if I'm far across the ocean! _

Hiro gritted his teeth and closed his eyes tightly as he shook his head. This couldn't be happening!

_OG: It won't be the same! _

_You'll just forget about me_

_like everyone else! _

* * *

><p><em>OrdinaryGifted - OG - has left the chat at - 5:53 PM - <em>

* * *

><p>Hiro closed all of his apps and threw his phone across his part of the room with an angry sob, his head buzzing. The silence in the room was deafening as Hiro crumpled into himself.<p>

Tadashi was gone off to some stupid college tour thing at some stupid school and wouldn't be home until long after dinner, Aunt Cass was as busy as ever with the cafe, and Tomoko was leaving in a month. Hiro felt completely alone, like the world was crumbling away under his feet and he was falling into a deep abyss.

Laying on his side, severe waves of shivering shook his lithe body. Tremors of terrible emotion shook his little frame and caused his breath to come out in short panicky gasps. His skin was slowly becoming clammy and cold with sweat, causing his hair to plaster itself to his head as he fought to keep his distress silent. Even though no one was around to even pay attention to the little noises he did make.

His fingers dug into his skin, sharp uncut nails cutting jagged half moon imprints into his clammy flesh. A whimper escaped his lips and he dug even more savagely down, hoping the feeling of pain would stop the noise. Hiro raked his hands up and down his arms again and again as the shivering continued on, biting his lip when a whimper wanted to escape his mouth. He wouldn't cry! He wouldn't!

Slowly, ever so slowly, his breath deepened and his head grew less fuzzy. Shaking slightly still, Hiro glanced down at his arms and felt his eyes widen at the sight of a thin trail of blood trickling down his red arms.

Oh. ...he'd done _that_? Why did he feel so calm now? Was it because of the blood and scratching?

Hiro shook his head to clear it and slowly sat up. Did cutting create the same effect? Was it a safe thing to do? At least if he cut, the wounds would heal cleaner right? He'd have to do research on this. Because if this was a way to get him to calm down, it was worth looking into, right? Right. But first, he needed to clean up his hands and make sure the blood wasn't obvious.

Standing on slightly wobbly legs, Hiro made his way over to the bathroom down the hall and washed his hands in the sink, watching in fascination as the red turned slightly pink and was swept into the drain by the rushing water out of the faucet. That done, he turned to the cupboard and took out the first aid kit. He looked at the roll of gauze and deemed it acceptable to wrap up his arm up. It was probably overkill but Hiro thinks it kinda looks a little cool, gently wrapped around his arm like that and taped together. Now more than ever he's glad that it's cold enough to wear one of his hoodies without it looking really weird.

Hiro makes his way back into his side of the room and sinks down on the swiveling chair. Time to research this. The boy cracks his knuckles and set his still slightly damp fingers onto the keyboard.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_Hey guys! Lookie here, I managed to update over the break! My aunt and uncle are very nice and letting me type this chappie up ^_^ Just wish it was a happier chapter… But have no fear! The next chapter is full of fluff! It's gonna be adorable and full of brotherly-ness!

On another related note: HOLY MOTHER OF MEGAZON GUYS! 231 reviews?! I'm in awe! Thank you thank you thank you thank you!

Big thank yous go tooo: KanaMac, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, CrazyCartoonistOtaku, Dineynerdbh6, seems-pretty-legit, wellthen44, waterlilly49, psychedelicLights, Purpalz Miner, zestychicken2, Disney Girl 26, Atariel Tsukai, lizzyAnnG, iambtastic, Turquisea, Koran Fantasy, BlueD, Third Comment, DreamweaverAki, regularshow565, LordCameronAndTheFlamingPoops, TreasuredSanctum, Highcrest Tomoko, Guest (#1), Guest (#2) ArianandXaia, Guest (#3), DarthRexPoke44, Alliprince, Guest (#4), Emily, Esax12x, SoaringOnWings, The Real Mystery Writer, Madness Shared, aaaand The Golden Marauder! Thanks again you guys! You're making my week great!

(Oh side note, the tally for how many times I've seen BH6 this month is now at five~ I love this movie too much to not drag all my friends who haven't seen it to it!)

*hands out tissues and cookies alongside hot chocolate*


	12. Chapter 12

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><em>Chapter Twelve<em>

* * *

><p><strong>One month...<strong>

* * *

><p>It was the second to last day of the semester and finals were upon the students imprisoned within the highschool. It was a day of both dread and celebration. You would have to push yourself harder, push yourself to go faster, to think <em>harder<em>, than any other time within class. But Hiro wasn't in the right mind to care for any of this, his body was on autopilot as a dull fog clouded his perception of the world.

Everything just seemed so _distant_. It was like he was a ghost that everyone could see and touch, but was still disconnected and far way from everything in reality. Nothing seemed real anymore. Hiro was just… there. Existing and going through the motions, like a mindless _robot_. He didn't even know if he was breathing anymore.

The only thing that really made the twelve year old feel like he was alive and grounded was the pocket knife he carried around in his hoodie pocket everywhere now.

Dimly, Hiro knew that this was something that he should stop, that it was stupid and self destructive. But now that he'd started, the twelve year old couldn't even dream of stopping. Not when it could calm him down and reassure him that he was still alive.

The day was passing by in a dull blur, the same way it had ever since he'd found out that Tomoko was moving. He'd tried _so hard _to pierce through the fog and reach out to her, to get some time in so they could actually meet before she left, but… she had too much stuff to do. Things to pack, immunizations to get, a passport to update. There wasn't enough time to squeeze in some looser who shed only talked to due to a school project.

Tomoko probably thought that he was a creeper anyways.

Hiro let out a depressed sign and rested his cheek on his hand, pencil idly tapping the desk as he waited for Mr. Hanndlest to pass out the test that would determine if he'd pass or fail his science class. Hiro didn't care. He just wanted it to be over. He was tired. Tired of everything. Maybe it'd be better if...

The awaited paper was slapped down on Hiro's desk, snapping him out of his train of thought. The twelve year old glanced up at his science teacher before looking down again, missing the look of shock and concern that flashed through the elderly man's face.

The strict man was concerned because when Hiro had looked up, his usually vibrant brown eyes had looked dull and hopeless. They had lost that sparkle that everyone had attributed to his genius and curious mind. Those brown eyes had looked dead.

* * *

><p>Tadashi let out a sigh as he finished bubbling in his last answer into his answer sheet. He felt a strange sense of peace and not at all shredded like he had been for the many tests he'd gone through throughout the semester.<p>

The sixteen year old let loose a content hum and settled back into his chair, placing his pencil down by the side of the paper.

Eve giggled at somethjng from behind him and Tadashi felt a soft grin spread across his lips. Then they smile faded as he recalled that outside of hometown tomorrow, it would be the last day that he'd ever see his friend. _That_ certainly brought his good mood down a bit.

Time passed and suddenly the call for pencils to be at rest and the tests to be flipped over and passed up to the front was made. Tadashi felt his heart rate speed up then slowly return to normal as he turned to Eve who was quickly gathering the stack of papers into one neat pile. This was it. The end of their journey together as classmates. That thought made something inside his heart pang hollowly.

It was at this moment that Tadashi realized that he didn't want his friend to leave; despite the fact that after graduation, they would have been parting ways anyways.

Almost numbly, Tadashi took the offered papers and slipped his test on top before passing everything in a nest pile forwards. Quiet murmurs of others beginning soft conversations spurred Tadashi to twist around in his seat again.

"So… you excited to be heading over to Japan?" He asked softly.

Eve looked up and her lips protruded in thought. "Well… Yes and and no." She admitted.

Tadashi felt one of his eyebrows rise. "That conflicted huh?"

Eve let out a depressed sigh. "Everything's happening so fast. I can't even meet up with my social project partner, I don't have the time for a measly five minute meet and greet!" She put her head into her hands. "I feel like I've let him down."

"Why's that?" Tadashi asked.

"I don't think he has a good home life." She confessed then paused, reconsidering. "Or at least... Not a supportive one. I don't think he's getting abused - I'd have reported it if I thought he was - I just think he doesn't have a good support system. He's a brilliant kid and he _needs_ someone to support him. And I'll be leaving him for another country entirely. I can't be there for him like he _needs_."

Tadashi nodded in understanding. "That's a tough deal, Eve."

"Uuugh! No kidding..." Eve groaned, letting her head hang in weary agreement.

"You're still going to keep in contact though, right?" Tadashi asked after a moment of consideration.

Eve's drooping head shot up so fast it was like she'd been burned on the forehead. "Of course I am! It's just… Gift's been trying to meet me before I leave and I've been too busy to let him!"

Tadashi raised his eyebrow again. "You _sure _he's not some creep?" He asked, protectiveness that usually only surfaced around his little brother rising into view.

Eve let out a derisive snort. "Tadashi! Gift's not like that! I think he's a sweetheart! Plus, I know he's a younger year - probably a freshman or a sophomore."

"They're sometimes worse. Especially if they're guys." Tadashi warned, "We can be really immature and I don't want you getting hurt."

Eve smacked him on the shoulder, hard. "Oh stop it you! I can handle myself perfectly fine!"

The eldest Hamada raised his hands in surrender, eyes shining in amusement. "Okay! Okay! I'm just saying, be careful - woah!" He dogged another swat with a laugh, nearly falling out of his seat.

Eve snorted in amusement as he scrambled to keep himself upright, his long lanky legs hooking themselves under his chair as he tipped backwards, hands barely managing to hold onto the edge of his desk and stopping his decent towards the floor. Tadashi pulled himself upright and adjusted his slightly rumpled shirt.

"Well… That was ingesting." he said.

Eve burst into a round of rather loud giggles just as the bell rang.

Tadashi rolled his eyes and reached down to grab his book bag. "Well..." He sighed, standing up. "I guess this is goodbye until tomorrow."

The eighteen year old smiled at him and got up as well, still fighting down giggles. "See you later, Tadashi."

And then the two parted ways. Tadashi to the right towards the front and Eve to the left. The sixteen year old supposed that she was going to talk to a teacher about something or another. Shaking his head, Tadashi focused on scanning the crowd for his little brother's small figure.

Suddenly a noise reached the eldest Hamada's ear and a rumble in his stomach made him crige in embarrassment. Well... It _was_ twelve o'clock, due to finals making the school day a half day. If Tadashi was hungry, he was plenty sure that Hiro would be _starving_.

A brilliant idea sparked to life in Tadashi's bright mind.

* * *

><p>Hiro shifted restlessly as Tadashi turned left from the school parking lot instead of turning right.<p>

"Tadashi where are we going, home's in the other direction!" the boy reached over and smacked his brother, confusion plain in his voice.

The elder Hamada grinned, guiding the car around a slowly moving car. "Already talked to Aunt Cass, I'm treating _you..._" He reached one hand over and poked Hiro, managing to hit him in the forehead. "Out tonight."

The car jerked slightly as it stopped just before they could run a red light.

Hiro stared cross eyed at the area Tadashi had poked before looking back at his brother, unimpressed. "..._where_ are you taking me exactly?" he asked.

Tadashi ignored the question and eyed the still red light with clear impatience. Hiro didn't know what was going on, his life was in so much chaos that even this deviation from normal was leaving his head spinning!

Tomoko would be leaving soon… Two days she'd said. In two days, he would _never _get to see his friend face to face, and thank her.

"Hey… You okay?"

Hiro jumped, eyes wide as he remembered that Tadashi was in the car with him. He looked away to the passing scenery of San Fransokyo. "Yeah… I'm fine."

"No you're not, bonehead."

Hiro flinched and opened his mouth to rebute what Tadashi had said but changed what he was going to say when the light changed. "Look Tadashi! The light's green!" He pointed.

Tadashi rolled his eyes and guided the car move forwards. "Not letting this go, knucklehead. What's been bothering you?"

Hiro shook his head and looked away from Tadashi's piercing gaze. "Ah... Nothing! Nothing's wrong! Aha... Why would you say that, big brother?" He squeaked nervously.

Tadashi was unconvinced. "Uh huh. Sure bonehead. Hey meant to ask earlier but how's your project doing?"

Oh no. Hiro was _not _having this conversation with Tadashi.

"...it's going fine. I guess." Then Hiro noticed where Tadashi was pulling in. "No way. Tadashi you don't have the money for this level of pricy food!"

Tadashi grinned. "Yeah, I do. Been saving up for an occasion like this."

"Shut up!" Hiro gaped at the restaurant before turning to Tadashi, an accusing glare lighting up his dulled eyes. "You're trying to bribe me to do something aren't you!"

Hiro's older brother laughed, ruffling Hiro's already messy hair and making the boy squawk. "Is it really that hard to believe that I wanna treat my little brother to something nice with no ulterior motive?" he asked.

Hiro let out a huff and pushed Tadashi's larger hand away from his head. "Yes." He deadpanned.

Tadashi fell back with a wounded expression on his face and causing Hiro to let loose laughter so genuine it left the twelve year old with an ache in his chest and mouth from smiling so wide.

"We really are eating at Bakurai's All You Can Eat Buffet?!" He finally asked after his laughing fit had subsided, looking at the mentioned restaurant with awe in his face. Tadashi grinned and ruffled his hair again.

"Yup! C'mon bonehead, I'm pretty sure you're starving." the elder Hamada laughed, stepping out of the car.

Hiro scrambled to follow, mood slowly lightening. "Yeah! How'd you know?"

Tadashi leaned on the car, waiting for his little brother to slip out. "If _I'm _hungry, I knew that _you'd _be starving." He laughed as Hiro's stomach gave a loud grumble of agreement, making the twelve year old flush beat red and clutch at the offending appendage. "C'mon, let's head in."

"Okay!" Hiro exclaimed, jumping up and down slightly. The twelve year old genius was practically vibrating in excitement. An idea caused him to grin mischievously and for some reason Tadashi's breath caught in his throat and his heart ached to see such a grin on his little brother's face. Brown eyes glinted in a mysterious light.

"Race you, Tadashi!" Hiro suddenly yelled, running towards the entrance. Tadashi felt a grin spread across his face and soon the only sound was their sneakers hitting the pavement and shrieks laughter as Tadashi quickly caught up and scooped Hiro into his arms.

"Tadashi! Th-that's cheating!" Hiro squirmed, a laugh filling his chest and making his sides hurt.

"Don't make me drop you bonehead! This way, we tie!" Tadashi laughed, using his back to push open the door and then deposited his little brother back onto his feet, all rumpled and red cheeked from laughing until he was breathless.

"But that's not the point of racing!" Hiro pouted, trailing behind Tadashi as the older Hamada paid for the both of them to go and pig out.

Tadashi rolled his eyes and reached behind to ruffle his hair, to which Hiro dodged with a scowl that threatened to turn into a grin. The girl behind the cash register giggled and turned to adress the tall sixteen year old.

"You and your son are adorable." she giggled. Hiro froze and gave her an incredulous look while Tadashi bit his lip trying not to laugh.

"Actually he's my brother." Tadashi chuckled. "We're just out celebrating the end of the first day of finals being over."

The girl blushed, looking rather embarrassed on having made such an erroneous assumption. "Sorry… that'll be $25.57."

While Tadashi was busy getting out the required amount, Hiro made a face at the girl while hiding behind his older brother. The girl quickly retaliated and stuck out her tongue like a snake then promptly stuck it back in when the sixteen year old returned his attention back to her, dollars in hand. The youngest Hamada snickered at his older brother's obliviousness.

"What are you laughing at, bonehead?" Tadashi glanced down at his little brother, expression amused.

Hiro quickly tried to morph his face back into one of neutrality but couldn't keep in the giggles that threatened to explode from his lips. "N-Nothin'!" he giggled through his hands.

Tadashi rolled his eyes and quickly pulled him in for a quick noogie. "When it's _you _giggling, 'nothin' is never nothing."

Hiro squirmed. "Ta_dashi_! Lemme go! Stop that!"

With a laugh and a final ruffle to Hiro's already fluffy head, Tadashi relinquished his grasp on Hiro. The twelve year old scowled and attempted to bring some semblance of order back to his hair.

"Not funny, Ni-san." Hiro huffed.

Tadashi just grinned wider before nodding at all the food laid out for the customer's consumption. "Let's go eat, bonehead." he suggested.

But Hiro was already wandering the foodstuff, plate in hand. Tadashi let out a rueful laugh and made to follow, just in time to hear a joyous exclamation of, "GUMMY BEARS!"

The sixteen year old surged forwards and grabbed the hood of Hiro's blue hoodie, cutting him off from dive bombing directly into the desserts area. Tugging gently, Tadashi gave the turned around Hiro a stern but amused look. "Let's eat real food first. _Then _you can make yourself sick on dessert."

Hiro rolled his eyes. "_Tadashiiii!_" he whined. "It's not like I'm only going to eat dessert! I'll have real food too! It'll just be backwards!"

Tadashi remained firm, knowing if he bent just a little, Hiro really _would _only eat dessert.

Frantically, Hiro dug out the big guns. "Pleaaaase?" he begged, lower lip protruding a bit as he made his wide brown eyes water a bit as if he really was going to start crying. Alas, it was a critical failure as the only reaction Tadashi gave his brother was a raised eyebrow and a gentle push towards the italian part of the buffet where several slices of pizza were cooling on racks and waiting for hungry mouths to tear them apart. Hiro gave in with good grace, mouth already watering at the sight of the different pizza flavors.

Tadashi watched him debate inwardly on which piece of pizza to go with for a few minutes before he turned towards the soups and salads area, mind trying to figure out which combination of soup would taste better with what type of salad. Eventually though, his eyes landed on a nearly hidden pot of soup. It's name tag revealed that it was actually chicken udon and Tadashi's wide eyes gleamed. _Jackpot._

Nearly giggling in his glee at finding his second favorite dish (the first always going to takoyaki), Tadashi served himself a rather nice helping of the dish.

Hiro took one glance at Tadashi's plate and rolled his eyes, cheeks already puffed up from pizza and plate piled high with the greasy food and Tadashi wonders why he even pointed his brother in that direction anyways.

Hands full of soup and chopsticks, Tadashi motions towards the tables. "Let's sit down before we make a mess."

Hiro mutters something through half chewed pizza but follows Tadashi's lead anyways as the two brothers sit down at a small table with only enough room for two. If Aunt Cass had accompanied them, they would have gotten a booth but since it was just the two, a table would suffice.

The silence between the brothers was the type of silence one receives when both sides are well fed; when stomachs are growing full and eyelids wish to close due to the warmth and contentment of eating a good meal surrounded by trusted family. Bowl empty, Tadashi relaxed back in his chair with a content sigh and with half lidded eyes observed how Hiro's plate was empty and the boy himself was vibrating in his seat.

"Okay Hiro, you've eaten enough 'real food' you can go gorge yourself full of gummy bears if your stomach has enough room for it." Tadashi allowed, and the other boy was off and out of his seat like a rocket. Tadashi let out a huff and got up with a groan, intending to look for a small piece of cake to treat himself with.

* * *

><p>Both Hamada brothers left when it was dark, their stomachs full to bursting and both feeling like they needed to be rolled <em>out <em>instead of them just walking. Hiro paused at car and glanced over at his brother.

"Hey Tadashi?" he called softly.

Tadashi let out a hum, glancing over at the car roof to Hiro.

Hiro shifted awkwardly, hands jammed into his blue hoodie. "I just… thanks. For tonight I mean. It means a lot."

Tadashi smiled. "I'm glad you've enjoyed yourself." he said softly back and slid into the driver seat.

"Hey Tadashi?"

"Yeah?" Tadashi turned on the car as Hiro slipped inside the passenger door and clicked on his seatbelt.

"Do you… do you wanna go see _A Brilliant Life _with me tomorrow after finals are all over?" Hiro asked quietly, unsure if Tadashi would be willing to watch something so _boring_ as a movie about his favorite scientist's struggles in the field of quantum physics.

Tadashi's smile brightened and he reached over to ruffle Hiro's hair. "Sure thing, Otouto." he said warmly.

Hiro's smile was like a thousand suns going supernova all at once and the corners of his eyes crinkled. The twelve year old looked out at the lights of San Fransokyo and felt like there was nothing that could ruin his life. He felt like he was _flying_, finally free to be happy once more. For once, the boy was sure, that everything would go right in his life.

Hiro was finally content.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_*flops face first onto floor* Good word, who ever said that road trips were fun never had to deal with traffic going through Las Vegas and onwards to home on holiday's end! *shudders* We saw like three accidents while heading back home and got stuck in Traffic-Jam-Number-I-Lost-Count. Anyways! Here's your chapter and I'm home safe and sound! Hope you enjoyed the fluffy bits, because next chapter is the final chapter of this arc… muwahahaha!

BIIIIG THANKS GO TO: seems-pretty-legit, waterlilly49, ArianandXaia, Ajhappyfeet, BrokenWings2602, Alliprince, saveyour950, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, Atariel Tsukai, DarthRexPoke44, Guest (#1), bumblebee78, PRincess Noodle, Purpalz Miner, DreamweaverAki, moonstone6793, KanaMac, BlueD, Turquisea, Disneynerdbh6, Sushi Hawkeye, Guest (#2), LadyWendy202, Guest (#3), Tigra22, Highcrest Tomoko, LordCameronAndTheFlamingPoops, PretiBurdi, DreamGirll, WonderfullDreams, Madness Shared, Rotor, RazzlePazzleDooDot, The Tempestuous Bengal's Song, Shoyzz, White Snow, Guest (#4), psychedelicLights, aaand Ria!

Thanks again everyone! *places out a never ending supply of cookies and hot chocolate beside the unending box of tissues*


	13. Chapter 13

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><em>Chapter Thirteen<em>

* * *

><p><em><strong>TRIGGER WARNING: SELF HARM VAGUELY MENTIONED<strong>_

* * *

><p>Hiro was exhausted. Every bone of his body ached and he just wanted to sleep off this pain until it was time to go to see <em>A Brilliant Life. <em>

"Hey bonehead." Tadashi's welcome voice reached Hiro's tired ears like a choir of angels, and a warm heavy hand ruffled his hair.

"Mrph." Hiro managed through a yawn and opened watering eyes. "Hey Tadashi."

"Hey yourself. You okay?" Hiro blinked, seeing that Tadashi had bent down to observe his person carefully.

Hiro grinned. "M' okay, Tadashi. Just tired." he assured his brother. Hiro let out another yawn and leaned into Tadashi's hand as the elder Hamada felt for a fever. "Your hand's _warm_."

Tadashi let out a hum and drew back, chuckling at Hiro's whine. "Well you don't look or feel sick. I need to give my friend a lift to his house, but I'll drop you off at home first."

Hiro opened a tired eye and gave his older brother a _Look_.

"Tadashiiii you better be home before three, we'll be going to the theater at four." Hiro reminded his brother, a whine in his voice as he tried to dangle from Tadashi's arm.

Tadashi laughed, reaching over and dragging the boy from his side to his front and dug his knuckles into the wild mass of hair, earning a tired squawk and a squirming Hiro for his efforts. Small inventor's hands batted at Tadashi's arm.

"Stop it - lemme _go_! _TADASHIII!_" Hiro squealed as Tadashi tickled him in the ribs, shaking legs exhausted from running a 5k buckling under his attempts to flee. The sixteen year old pulled his squirming brother close, supporting him as Hiro collapsed against him, scowling.

"Don't worry, bonehead. I'm not gonna skip out on you." Tadashi assured his little brother.

Hiro huffed. "Well you better not or else-"

"Tadashi! Sorry I'm late!" an unfamiliar voice reached Hiro's ears and cut him off. The twelve year scrambled out of Tadashi's arms and hid behind him before peering out around to see who the intruder friend was. Hiro was very suddenly and sharply put on guard. He'd heard that voice before, somewhere…

It was a tall blond tenager, all gangly limbs and a lean narrow face marred slightly with old acne scars.

"Thomas! Meet my little brother, Hiro." Tadashi called, pulling Hiro out from his half hidden position.

Hiro squirmed, quickly becoming uncomfortable in his own skin and his fingers itched to at least _hold_ his pocketknife as Thomas' sharp cold gaze penetrated him to his core. Those cold blue eyes made Hiro sick to his stomach, like he'd been violated in some metaphysical way.

Almost subconsciously, the boy pressed back into Tadashi's legs and side, warily watching the stranger. Hiro didn't like this Thomas. His gut was yelling for him to not trust the guy. Everything in his little being was _screaming _to _get away _but Tadashi's warm hand on his shoulder stopped him from running all the way to the harbor.

Hiro tossed his older brother a glance to see if Tadashi had noticed how tense he'd gotten, how obviously uncomfortable he was in this stranger's presence - but no, Tadashi had only been reacting to Hiro's moving closer. The eldest Hamada still remained completely oblivious to the fact that Hiro was practically _buried _into Tadashi's side.

The small twelve year old chanced another glance at the other teenager and flinched back at the sickeningly sweet smile Thomas was giving him. But those blue eyes remained chillingly cold and held a glimmer of something… _else, _something dangerous. It was that glimmer of something that sent ice shuddering down his spine.

"Nice to meet you, Hiro. I've heard a lot of things about you in homeroom." Thomas said, bending down to his level as he spoke. The blue eyes burned holes into Hiro's skull.

Breath catching in his throat, Hiro ducked into Tadashi's side and mumbled a hello, fingers digging into his brother's jacket. He was shivering, tremors sliding through his fingers and making his teeth chatter.

"Hiro? You okay?" Tadashi glanced down, confusion evident in his voice. Hiro just burrowed deeper until he was practically tucked into Tadashi's armpit.

"M' cold, Tadashi. Take me home, _please_?" Hiro whined, completely omitting the fact that looks Thomas was sending him were making him feel _really _uncomfortable.

Tadashi laughed and ruffled Hiro's fluffy hair, making the boy grumble quietly. "Sure thing bonehead. C'mon Thomas, we're going!"

As the three of them headed out of the parking lot, Hiro made it a point to remain firmly attached to Tadashi's side, and always on the side where Thomas _wasn't_. They got to the car and that's when things started to shift for the boy.

"Hey bonehead, would you mind if Thomas sat in the passenger seat today?"

Hiro stared up at his older brother, wide eyed. He never sat in the back. Well Tadashi never gave rides to friend either but today was apparently full of exceptions. Hiro glanced at Thomas and felt his skin crawl at the thought of the blond teenager staring at the back of his head. He'd prefer to be able to have the guy within his sights at all times anyways.

"Okay." he reluctantly allowed, grabbing at the handle to the back seat. Waiting almost anxiously for Tadashi to unlock it, he bounced agitatedly on his heels and winced when the corners of his books dug into his back due to the motion. The moment the lock receded, Hiro launched himself into the back and curled up into a ball, backpack thudding to the floor.

"Buckle yourself in, kiddo!" Tadashi scolded with a laugh. Hiro uncurled a tiny bit, just enough to get the seatbelt across his chest and waist and when the click of the key piece was heard and felt through his fingers, sprung back into the ball he'd turned into.

Brown eyes glared up untrustingly at the teenager in _Hiro's _seat from behind a curtain of shaggy brown hair. Hiro kept his chin tucked into the crevice between his knees and let himself rock with the gentle movements of the car, closing his eyes. _...just for a little while…_ he told himself.

The next thing he knew, Hiro was being shaken awake by a warm familiar hand. "Hey bud." Tadashi's warm voice washed through Hiro's lethargic brain. "We're at home."

"Mrrrph?" the boy yawned, rubbing at his sleep encrusted eyes.

"I've gotta take Thomas home, okay? C'mon kiddo, you can wake up a bit faster than this, I know you can." Tadashi teased. Hiro let out a tired hum, delicate hands more suited for inventing than anything else reached down to grab sloppily at his backpack, nearly dropping it to the floor when he tried picking it up with a weak tired grip. Tadashi's amused huff made Hiro's face contort into a pout as his older brother grabbed the book burdened backpack and slipped it onto Hiro's back as the boy leaned into Tadashi's warm side.

"You'll be back in time, right?" Hiro whispered, fingers catching onto the folds of Tadashi's green jacket. Warm gentle fingers reached and carded themselves soothingly into his thick hair.

"Of course I will, bonehead. I promised, didn't I?"

Hiro closed his eyes, took in a deep shuddering breath to ground himself and pulled away. "Okay." he said, "Okay. Drive safely."

Tadashi's face softened. "Of course, bonehead." He affectionately poked Hiro in the head and laughed when the boy went cross eyed.

* * *

><p>Tadashi shut his door and slumped back into his seat with a sigh. Thomas looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.<p>

"Your brother seems really clingy." he remarked.

Tadashi groaned and leaned forwards slightly, rubbing his face. "Yeah…" he muttered. "I think that was just his exhaustion talking. He gets like that when he's stressed or tired."

Thomas nodded, understanding lighting his blue eyes. "Gotcha." he drawled. Soon after conversation died out between the two and Tadashi put the car into drive and pulled out of the Lucky Cat Cafe's parking lot.

Thomas leaned forward sharply. "Turn here!"

Tadashi turned on the blinker and obediently turned left as directed. More turns followed accompanied by a chatter of directions. One more memorable one had Tadashi cracking up at the wheel. It started out ordinarily enough.

"Keep going straight and turn right when you reach the red house - no not that house, the brick red one… ...thats actually made out of bricks. Who knew!"

The sixteen year old snorted.

"Turn here! My house is the blue one in the middle of the cul de sac." Thomas pointed. Tadashi pulled around the corner and felt his eyes widen. There were cars parked everywhere in the street. People entered and exited out of the blue house, red cups in hand. Faintly, Tadashi could hear the drum of a base pumping away at some unfamiliar beat.

"Thomas. Do you always throw a party when finals are over?"

Thomas grinned, leaning back in his seat. "Yeah man! Gotta celebrate that the torture's over! C'mon, my parents got this awesome pool all set up in the back, the party's been on since ten cause some neighbors invited some dudes and ladies from USF, do you wanna check it out?"

Tadashi frowned. "Thomas I need to be heading back h-"

"Yeah, yeah, deadline's three I get it, man it's cool! C'mon it's one oclock, you've got two hours until you need to head home. Stay a little longer, live life! Don't be such a homebody, Hamada!"

"But I might need to help my aunt out in the cafe -"

Thomas put his hand on Tadashi's shoulder and looked at him with solemn blue eyes. "Dude. You help your aunt out _everyday_. Treat yourself man! Be a little selfish! Socialize!"

Tadashi stared at Thomas' hand and swallowed dryly. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes to center himself.

"Okay. _Fine_. I'll attend your stupid party, you manipulative maven." It would only be for an hour, he was sure he'd be home in time to see _A Brilliant Life _with Hiro. What could go wrong?

It wasn't like he was looking for any trouble, anyways.

* * *

><p>Hiro sat up with a start. He hadn't meant to fall asleep! What time was it?! Had Tadashi gotten home or had he only been asleep for five minutes? Frantic brown eyes scanned the room for his clock and froze at the flashing numbers. 3:15 PM. Where was Tadashi? Shouldn't he be back by now?<p>

Dread filled his stomach and he jumped off the bed, socked feet sliding slightly on the wood. Using that momentum, Hiro dashed out of his room and the thud of his feet pounding the stairs was a staccato beat parallel to the drumming of his heart.

"Aunt Cass! Has Tadashi come home yet?" Hiro called, sliding to a halt near the entryway of the kitchen.

The auburn hair of his aunt popped starkly against the white of the light green wall. "No? What time is it?"

"It's three! Tadashi should be back soon, right?" Hiro gave an anxious little tap of his socked foot. "Has he called you to let you know that he's gonna be late?"

He deflated as Aunt Cass shook her head. "No… How about you go put an apron on and help out, you can keep an eye out for his car."

"Sure… I guess…" Hiro sighed and turned around. "I don't really have anything else to do…"

"Hiro."

Hiro turned around slightly. "Yeah?"

Aunt Cass gave him a small trembling smile. "He'll be here soon, I'm sure of it."

"Yeah… I hope."

And then his socked feet where hitting the stairs with a slow thumping beat completely out of synch with the pounding of his own heart.

* * *

><p>Hiro kept glancing outside the cafe windows, breath catching at his throat at the sound of a car passing by. His tense muscles would always clench then suddenly release at the realization that no, it <em>wasn't <em>Tadashi's car. Tense fingers would clench at whatever plate he held and then slowly release but every time left an ache that just kept building and building until his whole arm was sending shards of pain every time he held another plate, handed out another glass.

"Hiro. Your aunt wasn't to see you." one of the waiters - his name escaped Hiro at the moment - tapped him on the shoulder. Hiro nodded and changed directions, having no other tables needing his attention to be cleaned at the moment.

"You needed to see me Aunt Cass?" Hiro leaned against the counter, his eyes drawing to the clock above the mantle and freezing.

4:36 PM. Tadashi hadn't come home. He'd promised. He'd _promised. He'd PROMISED! _Her look of sorrow said it all, and with a choked off oath, Hiro turned away, scrubbing at his burning eyes. This wasn't FAIR! He was supposed to be here! They were supposed to - supposed to-! Ugh!

"Hiro, you can be done if you want." Aunt Cass softly suggested. Hiro nodded, his bangs covering his eyes.

He went up stairs to a darkened room. With a defeated sigh Hiro sank down in his chair, not even bothering to turn on his light.

"I guess I could build a robot." Hiro mused quietly. He spun around his chair a few times and winced as his foot hit the desk on one of the rounds. He eyed the computer resting on the desk. Hmmm…

Eh, one peak on his social page wouldn't hurt… right? Right. Hiro took a deep breath and with shaking fingers typed in his password and username. He hadn't been on here since the video went viral. Why was he even doing this?

The page loaded and Hiro flinched back eyes widening. So many words, so many comments. So many blocked out names and pictures.

* * *

><p><em>wow he's so pathetic<em>

_haha not so smart now r u_

_who's stupid enough to get their head flushed in the toilet?! _

_lol wut a looooozer _

_can't believe his parents named him HERO_

_how lame is that?! _

_they even spelled it wrong! _

_looser_

_wut kind of brother would want a pathetic loser like u_

_lozer_

_waste of space_

_why does he even go here_

_it'd be better if u were gone_

_go die in a hole_

_no 1 likes u_

_zero_

_die_

_why don't you just leave_

_nerd_

_what a waste_

_you had so much potential _

_zero no hero_

_stupid_

_flushie head_

_die already_

_die die die die die!_

_You don't seem to get it, nerd boy, so lemme spell it out for you: you don't belong here. No one would care if you just died.*_

_Tadashi wouldn't even care if you just dropped DEAD._

* * *

><p>Hiro took a deep breath, fighting to keep himself from hyperventilating. He turned around and paced the room before taking another breath and spinning on his heel to face the computer. He sat down on the chair and reached up to turn on the web cam.<p>

He began in a shaky voice, "I'm the real Hiro Hamada. And I don't know why everyone heard my name and decided to hate me for who I am. My parents selected the Japanese characters meaning generous or tolerant when they decided to focus on my Japanese heritage." His voice cracked, "But I think I've used up all the tolerance that my parents wanted me to have. Because now... Now I hate myself too. And I've thought... Wouldn't it be nice... To see them again? After nine years of knowing that I never really knew them. Because they've been dead. And... Maybe... I should be there, wherever they are too. I don't know... if heaven or hell exists. I just... I want to go _home_. So... I guess this is goodbye?" A tear fell from his eye and Hiro shut off the camera, uploading it to his profile before switching to a search engine, unable to watch as it started pinging with notifications. He savagely hit the mute button and stared blankly at the empty search bar unable to stomach the thought of hearing the video go viral.

Biting his lip, he entered: 'HOW TO KILL YOURSELF PAINLESSLY' and started researching as the tears streamed down his face. He'd been broken long before now. The only difference was that he'd stopped bothering to pick the pieces back up. Because there wasn't any point to do so anymore.

Tomoko was gone. Tadashi hated him. No one cared.

Hiro took in a shuddering breath as his choice of leaving this world was made, carefully considered and then accepted. He just had one more thing to do.

He picked up his phone, ignoring the notifications unrelated to his purpose.

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG - has joined the chat at - 4:36 PM -<em>

* * *

><p><em>OG: Hey... Tomoko, since I won't be able to see you, I just wanted to say, thank you for being there for me. Thank you for making my last days of highschool brighter than they would have without you. Goodbye, Tomoko.<em>

* * *

><p><em>Ordinary Gifted - OG - has left the chat at - 4:42 PM -<em>

* * *

><p>Hiro tossed the phone face down on his bed. He wouldn't need it anymore. He paused at the door, looking at the mess he'd made while living in his side of the room. It would hurt Aunt Cass if she had to organize his stuff after he was gone.<p>

Hiro didn't want to be a bigger burden than he already was and so he turned around and rolled up his sleeves. The faster he did this, the faster he would be able to reunite with his parents.

* * *

><p>Tadashi was late.<p>

* * *

><p>Hiro shook, pain covering every part of his mind. It was like lava was in his veins, turning every nerve cell into flaming mess of pain. He couldn't breath through his sobs. It <em>hurt<em>. It HURT!

_Tada-ni… Tada-ni… Tada-n… Tad… _

* * *

><p>Tadashi's vision swam as his breath caught in his throat. <em>Where's Hiro? <em>the thought dimly penetrated the fog clouding his mind. _I have to find Hiro! _

"HIRO!" he called, near the top of his lungs. "HIRO WHERE ARE YOU!"

There was only silence.

* * *

><p>There was a rushing in his ears.<p>

Everything was growing dark.

Hiro couldn't find his breath.

"HIRO! WHERE!"

Who was that…. calling him? Ta…

* * *

><p>"HIRO!"<p>

* * *

><p>The darkness was heavy so dim what was breathing? dimly heard a sound a repeated sound that was loud and dull and quiet and fading…<p>

* * *

><p>"Don't worry, I'm getting you out of there, just hang on!"<p>

* * *

><p>Tadashi was late.<p>

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_*sets out unending supply of tissues and cookies with hot chocolate or other heated beverage of choice and absconds*

BIG THANKS GO TO: The Golden Marauder, animesbff13, Guest7602, ArianandXaia, waterlilly49, seems-pretty-legit, Atariel Tsukai, Miss Effie T, bumblebee78, LadyWendy202, RazzlePazzleDooDot, DarthRexPoke44, Angela, psychedelicLights, Escaping The Shadow, BlueD, Silverstream, DreamGirll, Disneynerdbh6, DreamweaverAki, Highcrest Tomoko, NotAnArtist7890, Guest (#1), Emily, Guest (#2), Shoyzz, snowflakeangel21, TheShyShadow (x2~! lol), Ajhappyfeet, regularshow565, Ellamena, KanaMac, teengens, Madness Shared, Narniac4aslan, 1000PaperUnicorns (*hugs* I'm so sorry. And thank you, I'm honored that you are enjoying this despite all that's happened. Lots of love sent your way! *hugs tighter*)

300+ reviews… I near about had a heart attack! THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE (=TTuTT=)

*ALSO THIS CHAPTER WOULD NOT BE AS AMAZING AS IT IS IF IT WERE NOT FOR THE GUIDANCE OF MY TAICHOU, MELANIE-SAMA!

PS, it's not complete just yet~


	14. Chapter 14

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><em>Chapter Fourteen<em>

* * *

><p>Tadashi stared blankly at the wall, leg bouncing up and down in an absentminded, agitated fashion. The only sound besides the sound of his sneaker squeaking on the hospital tile floor was the steady beat of a heart monitor. The murmur of Aunt Cass and a doctor whose name Tadashi didn't care to remember talking washed over him. But his focus was on the beat, the beat that had nearly been wiped out, nearly missing being forever erased out of his life.<p>

Tadashi closed his eyes and breathed through his nose, grimacing as the smell of hospital and antiseptic hit him like a sledgehammer, bringing forth faded memories. He hated hospitals. They made those faded memories slightly more pronounced and vibrant. Memories of when his life had changed forever, when he was only seven and so sure he knew everything, with little Hiro clutched to him. He'd only been three when it happened…

Hiro… just thinking his little brother's name shoots shards of agony through his heart and brings tears to his eyes. He's been crying on and off for hours. The memories flooded him again.

* * *

><p><em>The shine from the hall light on the blood slick tile, how limp the body of his brother had been, head lolling into the crook of his arm, skin clammy and still warm. The wetness of the towel as it turned a dark murky brown then fully red, staining his fingers. His throat tearing as he screamed and screamed and SCREAMED for (help please Aunt Cass! Aunt Cass! Please, anyone! Help me he's BLEEDING OUT)!<em>

_Raging at the world because he couldn't lose his little brother (not you too, not you please no not you) too and pleading for his brother to ( stay with me buddy please. I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry sorry sorry sorry no no no please PLEASE DON'T LEAVE. WHERE'S AUNT CASS - HIRO STAY ALIVE, PLEASE) stay._

_How footsteps had sounded up the stairs finally and Aunt Cass had screamed and someone was crying and shouting for an ambulance and yelling at a 911 operator. How hands had tried to pry him away and he'd looked up covered in blood into the faces of paramedics and had to let go (no no Hiro I'm sorry I'm sorry please don't leave me I'm sorry I'm sorry it's my fault my fault please don't die) of his brother's hand and makeshift tourniquet and let them work all the while feeling - numb numb numb numb - like a wall was between him and the world. A paramedic was trying to talk but it's only noise between the rushing in his ears and the tears falling ("I found him like that. He-") and he chokes and tastes the salt of his own tears._

_He'd fallen silent, trembling, still crying, choking, shuddering. It was like he'd never stop ever again. He knew nothing would ever be the same. Now that blood was on the tile and on his hands and the reassuring warmth of Hiro's limp body was GONE._

_Things blurr and suddenly he finds himself in the car, heading to the hospital behind a wailing ambulance with it's red lights flashing in his eyes. Red is all he can see. Everything is still numb._

_Time slips again and Tadashi finds himself in an uncomfortable chair, staring at a prone figure so achingly familiar and yet so foreign as wires and a breathing tube are covering a delicate cherub face and body. So still… so still it's wrong he should be moving, talking his ear off a mile a minute, doing SOMETHING instead of just being so… still… The beat of the heart monitor is his only solace._

* * *

><p>Tadashi is only left with unanswered questions. A constant barrage of 'why's on repeat. Over and over again he asked the same thing in varied forms. Why had he done it? Why had Hiro felt like it would be the best option if he wasn't on the earth anymore? Why had <em>his little brother <em>felt the need to end it all? Why… why… why why why why!

Tadashi curled in on himself, the tears falling faster, falling harder as his breath caught in his throat, choking him in mid whine. His arms encircled his middle and it was like he had been cleaved in half.

If only he had refused Thomas' offer! An hour… he'd only meant to stay an hour. But an hour had turned into two, eventually merged into three as Thomas kept him well distracted by dragging him everywhere. At four hours Tadashi had managed to glance at his phone and felt his heart _stop_. He'd ripped his arm away from Thomas' grip and had spun on his heel. He'd ignored the startled questions as he raced out of the house and into his car. By the time he'd driven himself home though, the panic had been replaced by excuses, explanations that tried to shift the blame off of Tadashi's shoulders and onto anyone else's but his. He'd lied to himself and had told a half truth to Aunt Cass. But really, he had _no excuse_. If there was a contest for World's Worst Big Brother In All of Time and Space, who would win hands down, no questions asked?

Him. It was him. _He _was the _worst brother_ in the _world_.

Who went to parties instead of going to a movie _promised _to a precious younger brother? Oh yeah. It was him. He was such a selfish idiot. How had he not _seen_ that Hiro was struggling? How could he have just believed that it was just him being tired, him being a moody teenager with pubescent mood swings, when in hindsight, Hiro's actions were a textbook example of depression! He was the worst brother in all of history.

"Tadashi?"

The boy in question jerked, eyes red and puffy as Aunt Cass, her own face red and splotchy, placed a hand on his shoulder.

Tadashi averted his eyes. "Hi Aunt Cass…" he murmered, voice choked. His eyes travel to the prone form on the hospital bed, Hiro's chest rising and falling in a reassuring steady pace.

"It's late. How about you go get some sleep." Aunt Cass said softly.

Tadashi bit his lip and frowned. "But Hiro could -"

"They have him on some medication that's making him sleep through the night. He won't be waking up for about eight more hours, Tadashi. Go home, I'll stay with him and txt you if anything changes." his aunt told him.

The sixteen year old's shoulders slumped. "...Okay…" he said, defeated.

His eyes traveled back to where Hiro lay, sleeping. A white bandage could be seen peeking out from behind the guide rails, wrapped around a thin wrist. Tadashi swallowed the lump in his throat and stood up, tearfully looking away from his little brother.

He'd be leaving him alone… like he always did…

He was a horrible brother.

His footsteps echoed on the tile floor, loud in the relative silence of the hospital room. He reached the white sterile door and paused. He turned around and looked at his brother's prone form again. The sixteen year old took a deep breath and bowed so low that he was practically bent in half. "I'm so sorry Otouto…"

He ignored Aunt Cass' dismayed gasp and fled the room, the tears falling again.

He was a failure of an older brother.

* * *

><p>The cafe was dark when he stumbled in through the back door. He cringed back, the memories of running down the dark hall screaming for Hiro with panic flooding his mind flooding his senses. He was on his hand and knees, retching for what could have happened if he was a little later in glancing at his phone and realizing he needed to be home, if Hiro had gone vertical along his arm instead of horizontal. Eventually, the fit passes but it leaves him trembling on the wood floor and staring at the stairs with trepidation.<p>

After what seems like eternity, Tadashi manages to push himself up off the ground. He braces himself when he takes that first step onto the staircase, breath hitching and the hand holding onto the guardrail clenching and unclenching spasmodically. His dark eyes travel the wall and then flinch away at a picture of Hiro grinning toothily, the gap in his teeth shining wide and proud, the corners of his cheeks making his eyes crinkle just a little around the edges. He'd just managed to catch one of the biggest fishes in Lake Yami, just south of San Fransokyo. It'd been the summer just before all of this had happened.

Hiro was so proud. He looked confident, and sure of himself. He hadn't looked like that in a long time, Tadashi realized and cursed himself for another failure in his brotherly duties. He hadn't seen the difference, the changes had occurred in so small of increments, that it was overlooked.

Tadashi ripped his eyes away from the picture and looked at his feet instead, the guilt churning in his chest and making his eyes sting with more cursed tears.

* * *

><p>He stared into the darkness, breath catching in his throat, foot frozen in mid air. He couldn't do it. He couldn't enter the place that had started this entire nightmare. But… he had to. His bed was in there after all. So was Hiro's. He'd have to cross Hiro's room to get to his. He couldn't do this.<p>

Tadashi shook his head. "Stop being so _stupid_!" he scolded himself angrily and swiped on the light, flinching back at the foreign cleanliness of Hiro's side of the room. Another reminder of what had happened because of his bad brother skills.

The screensaver was still on. Tadashi gritted his teeth and turned his back on it, making it a point to not investigate as he headed to the shogi screen that seperated the large space into their bedrooms.

It could have only been just _his _and he _wouldn't have known _if he had left later than he had. It'd been too close. Far too close.

Something pinged and Tadashi glanced down at his phone. It was Eve.

Eve: _TADASHI_

_TADASHI PLEASE ANSWER THIS AS SOON AS YOU WAKE UP_

_OH MY GOSH I HATE TIME ZONE DIFFERECES_

_TADASHI I KNOW YOU STAY UP LATE ON FRIDAYS!_

_TADASHI_

_TADASHI_

_TADASHI_

Tadashi's eyes widened.

Tadashi: _What's wrong Eve? What's happened? Why are you All Caps Raging at me? Did I do something wrong?_

Eve: _IT'S GIFT. I THINK THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH HIM. HE SENT ME A TEXT AROUND FOUR THIRTY YOUR TIME SAYING GOODBYE AND I_

_I THINK HES_

_I THINK HES KILLED HIMSELF_

_I_

_HE ISN'T ANSWERING ME._

Tadashi felt ice freeze his stomach and he closed his eyes as his synapses finished connecting the dots.

Tadashi: _Gift's fine._

Eve: _HOW DO YOU KNOW_

_oops capslock -_-_

_How do you know?_

Tadashi: _I think Gift is my younger brother. We found him just in time but…_

Eve: _Tadashi I am SO sorry_

Tadashi: _No, it's not your fault. it's mine I should have seen the signs. I study medical texts for fun. I should have known better than just blowing it off as teenage mood swings!_

Eve: _Tadashi, it's not your fault either!_

Tadashi snorted. "Yeah it is." he muttered, typing up his words as he spoke them. Then he tossed his phone onto his bed with a dark laugh before hanging his head, shoulders shaking.

He was the worst brother _ever_.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:<strong>_Thank you so much for the reviews everyone! They're all so wonderful! 357! Wowza! Sorry it's so short, but I wanted to update you all on what Tadashi was feeling... hehe *hands out tissues and directs people to table laden with refreshments* Hope you've enjoyed!

SUPER BIG THANKS GO ONCE AGAIN TO MELANIE-MARCH-, WITHOUT HER THERE'D BE SOME RATHER EMBARASSING MISTAKES IN HERE. XD

Big thanks go to:

LadyWendy202, Padfoot the epic GLOWSTICK, thetimehasturned3, CrazyCartoonistOtaku, A. , TreasuredSanctum, Turquisea, Escaming The Shadow, SoaringOnWings, Alice, The Golden Marauder, Purpalz Miner, DreamweaverAki, h, Silverstream, Guest (#1), BlueD, TheKreibae, Disneynerdbh6, ArianandXaia, KanaMac, Sushi Hawkeye, Blood of the Wolf, TridentTattoo, seems-pretty-legit, DreamGirll, Snowflake (yeah... I was inspired by it...), Melanie-March (taichou... TT-TT thank you for catching that mistake...), The-Shepherd's-Daughter, wellthen44, crazydaisy555, sherlywherlylock, Guest7602, TooLazytoLogin, umdiddle, guestarecooler, DarkRexPoke44, WriterGurl11, teengens, Mynameisname, Madness Shared, Guest (#2), Guest (#3), aaaand Narniac4aslan!


	15. Chapter 15

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Fifteen<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>TRIGGER WARNING FOR SELF HARM<strong>

* * *

><p>Tadashi finally braved Hiro's side of the room, his pain overcome by an overwhelming <em>need to know why<em>. And maybe… just maybe, his little brother's computer would help him with that.

The first thing the sixteen year old noticed was that all the tabs on the browser were tiny, and he felt his heart constrict as he realized that Hiro had _so many tabs dedicated to ways of killing himself. _And yet, he'd chosen the one of the ways that would hurt the most. Did his brother really hate himself that much?

Tadashi swallowed thickly, fighting back the tears that he was growing to accept as something that'd become a Thing. His trembling fingers hit a button on the keyboard and suddenly the elder Hamada was bombarded with the sounds of a social page going off with many notifications.

_Hiro's social page?_ Tadashi thought faintly. Frantic in his searching for the right tab, the teen clicked through several pages of information Hiro had looked at only hours previous. Maybe his social page would have answers.

The thing about truth is that it's a Pandora's Box. Once you've learned something you can never unlearn it. It is forever in your brain.

Tadashi found Hiro's social page- and he immediately wished he hadn't. So many posts were about a video, about how it was about time, and other nasty, nasty things that made the elder Hamada flinch back at their vulgarity. Tadashi closed his eyes and breathed through his nose, gripping the edge of the desk in an attempt to ground himself. The words swam into being behind his eyelids, demanding he pay attention. They were to be forever engrained, the words seemed to insist.

Dim memories of a day full of anger and agitation, come running into his mind. Memories of how Hiro's phone had buzzed and buzzed and buzzed without end and was ultimately ignored on the car ride home. Was this what Hiro'd been going through? Day in, day out? Had it gotten so bad that he couldn't take it anymore? But… he'd been so happy last night…

_And yet _you _let him down_, a dark voice said in the back of his mind, making Tadashi flinch and look anywhere but his little brother's computer. _Just like everyone else_. It was true. It was his sworn duty as an older brother to protect the children who were born after. And yet… he had failed, in the most horrific of ways. He hadn't been able to protect his little brother from himself, because he'd been so wrapped up in his own business, his own worries that he hadn't seen anything wrong until it was too late. Tadashi had failed because he wasn't there to support Hiro when he had needed it the most.

Eventually, Tadashi found himself watching the video everyone was going crazy over. And felt his stomach drop as Hiro's tear stained face filled his view.

"_I'm the real Hiro Hamada and I don't know why everyone heard my name and decided to hate me for who I am." _

Tadashi couldn't breathe. His brother looked so broken, so lost and confused. It was like he'd crumble away into dust in the slightest breeze. "Hiro, no…" he whispered, voice hitching.

"_My parents chose the Japanese characters meaning generous or tolerant when they decided to focus on my Japanese heritage."_

Tadashi bowed his head as his little brother's voice cracked and trembled with suppressed tears, brown eyes shining and looking imploringly at the camera as if he were begging his audience to just _understand_. The Hiro on the camera shifted slightly and glanced away before returning to the camera. His voice was hoarse.

"_But I think I've used up all the tolerance that my parents wanted me to have. Because now… now I hate myself too." _

Tadashi was crying, loud sobs and a constant stream of "I'm so sorry, Hiro!" being repeated over and over. He nearly missed what Hiro had to say next, what made his blood run cold.

"_And I've thought… Wouldn't it be nice... To see them again? After nine years of knowing that I never really knew them. Because they've been dead. And... Maybe... I should be there, wherever they are too."_

Tadashi shook his head frantically, hyperventilating through his sobs. "No, please! Don't think like that!" he begged, despite having the knowledge of what had been done. His Hiro looked defeated, like he'd given up fighting.

And he had. He had stopped fighting because _no one had stood up for him_. _Because no one had fought for him._ Including his older brother.

" _I don't know... if heaven or hell exists. I just... I want to go _home." the camera Hiro pleaded wearily and Tadashi felt his heart shatter into irreparable pieces.

Then, camera Hiro smiled softly, suddenly insecure. He floundered for words. "_So… I guess this is goodbye?" _

A tear streamed down his Hiro's face and the dust of Tadashi's heart caught flame and turned to molten ashes. Camera Hiro reached up and turned off the camera. The video was finished.

Tadashi was broken. Had been breaking ever since he found Hiro's internet history. But now, after finding what was basically Hiro's _suicide note, _he was completely broken into jagged pieces that he didn't even know how to fix. He was sure Hiro was worse off than he was and that made the tears all the more bitter. Because when you love someone so much and you see them in pain, you want to take all of their pain and make it your own so they don't have to suffer.

But that's not healthy, and Tadashi knew it. Knew it and yet it didn't change that desire to take all of Hiro's pain away. Tadashi was and always would be a protector, and right now, he felt like he'd failed at that. Failed at what was his core principle. He'd failed as a person, and as a brother.

His weary, tear logged eyes traveled back to the screen. So many comments were referencing a second video. Someone had even posted a link to it after others had questioned about it, obviously just as out of the loop as he was.

It was filmed with a shaky hand, the camera going everywhere at once and made Tadashi feel queesy from all the excess motion.

"_-nerd, ever consider taking a swim?"_ a cocky voice asked and suddenly Tadashi's blood ran chill for the second time that night before it suddenly switched to a white hot rage that changed that ice to _fire_ because that was his baby brother being manhandled in the boys bathroom nearest the cafeteria.

"_Please don't!"_

The rage boiling inside Tadashi's chest rose a few notches at the sheer terror in his baby brother's voice. Hiro was begging. He never begged, unless he was trying to worm his way out of something trivial like a disliked chore. And it was never like this. _Never_.

"_Should've done our homework, _nerd_." _

"_You earned that grade, Andrews!" _

Tadashi felt pride in how Hiro was still trying to stand up for himself, even though he was clearly terrified of whatever these bullies were planing. Rage surged up again as the one identified as Andrews leaned close to Hiro's face.

"_Because of you I'm having to retake the class." _Despite it being hissed, the camera still caught it.

"_You did nothing, you can't expect to pass a class just by skating through and doing no work at all-" _

Tadashi let out an angered yell as the slap resounded hard and clear in the speakers. He was going to hunt down this Andrews and make him see how he liked being slapped around by a _black belt. _

"_Let's take him swimming guys." _

And Hiro screamed before he went limp, having been punched in the solar plexus. Tadashi's hands fisted into balls, his fingernails making half crescent moons in his flesh.

"_Aw… is the lil' nerd scawered?"_ the one filming taunted as Tadashi's _little baby brother _was dragged into the stall and forced to his knees, arms pinned behind his back.

_No no no no no _Tadashi's mind went to dark places and he fought the urge to throw up.

"_I h-hate you." _Hiro hissed, mouth full of poisonous venom and Tadashi couldn't find it within himself to disagree with the vitriol that had spewed out of his baby brother's mouth.

"_Like you'll do anything about it, you wimp." _And then his baby brother's head _was dunked into the toilet bowl. _Three times in total this occurred and every time, Tadashi feared that they would drown him as the one filming zoomed in on Hiro's thrashing body as he grew weaker and weaker in his struggles.

They dumped him wet and gasping for breath on the tile floor and Tadashi hated _hated HATED _the laughter that those evil fiends let loose before the video suddenly cut off, having been jerked away from the crying form of his baby brother just as it ended.

The rage burned in his veins, an icy cold thing. Tadashi knew one thing for certain: he was going to find this Andrews, and kill him. And anyone else who got in his way and thought that touching a _hair _on his baby brother's head was okay. It. Wasn't.

Tadashi scrolled to the top of the social page and began writing.

_This is Tadashi Hamada and you all have nearly caused me to loose the only family I have left. I hope you're happy that my little brother is lying in a hospital bed, strung up to IVs and medical tape and staples being the ONLY THING from keeping him from dying of blood loss. A TWELVE YEAR OLD LITTLE BOY! A BOY! IS IN A HOSPITAL ROOM, DRUGGED TO SLEEP, BECAUSE OF YOU ALL. _

_I hope you're all happy. Because I am NOT. _

It wasn't what he wanted to say in full, but it would have to do. Otherwise it would be illegible and filled to the brim with curse words and Tadashi didn't want to be on _their _level. The sixteen year old hit post and shut down the browser. He needed to walk off this rage before he did something stupid and wasted it.

* * *

><p>Darkness slowly faded to the red gleam of sunlight piercing through the blood vessels within his closed eyelids. His head felt like it was floating, high up in outer space. The soft sound of a machine's steady beat washed over him as the strange sensation of oxygen pouring constantly through his nose caused said appendage to twitch and scrunch up at the foreign experience.<p>

He opened brown eyes and winced at the brightness, a whine escaping his lips as he blinked away tears of sleep. Where was he?

The ceiling was white, he observed. He tilted his head sideways. The walls were white with blue trim. Hiro turned his head back and heaved a bitter sigh, screwing his eyes shut at the sunlight filtering through the sheer white curtains. _Great_. He was a failure as well as a screw up. He couldn't even _die _properly. Now, he was stuck in a hospital room, where there'd be no way for him to try for a second time.

Great. Just perfect, like he'd always wanted.

The sound of a door shutting makes him flinch and Tadashi's voice rings out, loud and clear despite it being coated in hesitance. "...Hiro?"

Hiro didn't want to open his eyes. He didn't want to see the look of… of whatever look Tadashi was sure to have on his face.

"Hiro… I know you're awake." Tadashi said softly, "Your heart rate changed a bit when I walked into the room."

"Huh… So that's what that constant beeping noise is. It should stop. It's getting annoying."

Suddenly, a weight was on his bed and Hiro flinched back again, eyes flying open to meet the dark gaze of his older brother who had sat down near his feet. Tadashi reached over and grasped Hiro's shoulder, looking him directly in the eye. "Hiro…" His voice broke and Hiro's eyes grew wider at the tears that streamed down his brother's face.

Hiro looked away, suddenly uncomfortable. "Why do you care, Tadashi?" he asked dully. Tadashi wiped at his tears and scowled.

"Because I'm your brother. I've never stopped caring for you and I never will!" the sixteen year old declared. Hiro shut his eyes as if the declaration pained him.

"Just saying words doesn't mean that you actually mean it, _nii-san_." he bit out and the weight on his hospital bed shifted.

"Then I won't say anything. I'll prove it to you through my actions." And then big arms were wrapping around his middle, careful of the IV in his arm and suddenly Hiro found himself in the middle of an extremely awkward hug.

"Just one hug doesn't mean you care, stupid!" Hiro scowled, trying to push Tadashi away and off his person, brown eyes shining. "It doesn't mean _anything_! Its just two people putting their arms around each other - haven't you realized how weird that is! You could hug me all the time and it wouldn't change a thing!" The tears fell and he quieted down, shivering. "It wouldn't change anything." he whispered.

Tadashi just hugged him tighter. "That's where you're wrong, buddy. You don't see it yet, but I'm sure you will eventually."

"Shut up." Hiro whispered hoarsely. "Just shut up!"

Tadashi pulled out of the hug and sat up straight again. There is silence for a while then, the dreaded question: "Hiro. Why did you do it?"

Hiro looked away again. His hands fisted into little balls and he bit his lip, hard. He really_, really _didn't want to answer that.

"Why did you go for a blade, Hiro?" Tadashi pressed, "Out of all the other ways, why did you choose that one?"

Hiro's lip ached so hard that he thinks that he might have caused it to start to bleed like he had in the beginning of the year.

"Hiro, please." Tadashi begged. "I need to understand."

"Why do you think, Tadashi?!" Hiro spat out.

"That doesn't matter, I need to hear from you first."

"Shut up!" Hiro screamed at his brother, tossing his head to the side so he didn't have to see the look of devastation on his big brother's face. "Just shut up! Stop talking! You ask and you ask all the wrong questions! You don't look deeper! You leave me alone when I don't want you to, you ignore me for your own ideas and concepts and you - you have the _gall _to come back to me, acting worried and _concerned_ - WHEN YOU HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING OF THE SORT SINCE THE SUMMER BEFORE SCHOOL STARTED!" The tears started streaming down his face then. "You look and you don't see _anything_, you're blind to what's going on around you - even if it's right under your nose! I tried so hard to reach out but you never noticed! Never noticed anything different about the way I acted. You just _ignored me!_"

Hiro let out shrill laugh, something so hysterical and high pitched that it kept Tadashi rooted to his spot. "If this is what it takes to get your attention I'll be dead by the end of the year." The boy continued softly, a manic gleam in his shining brown eyes. Tadashi jerked back as if he'd been slapped.

"Hiro... otouto, no -"

Hiro let out another giggle, more hysterical than the last. To Tadashi it sounded more like a sob. "You asked me why I did it, _ni-san_. Why I chose to do what I did out of _all the others…"_

Tadashi swallowed thickly.

"It's because I _hate myself, _that's why!" Hiro howled, his laughter coming out more like sobs than anything else. The bed bounced and suddenly Hiro found himself being pulled into another hug, making him squirm as he was completely lifted off his back.

Tadashi tucked his face into Hiro's shoulder, pulling the boy close to his chest as his shoulders trembled. The younger boy froze in his wiggling as a wetness started to stain his hospital gown. "T-Tadashi - what?"

"I'm so, so _sorry_." Tadashi whispered, shaking hands carding through Hiro's fluffy hair. "You're right, I _haven't _paid any attention to what's been going on outside my own little bubble world. I'm so sorry, otouto. I'm so sorry! I'm so selfish…" he sniffed, "I never paused to think that my actions would hurt _you. _I've failed you, as a brother and as a fellow human being. I'm so sorry… I know words won't make this failure up but I am still so _sorry_!"

Hiro closed his eyes, shakily breathing in his brother's scent. Tears soaked his eyelashes and streamed down an already tear stained face. Trembling hands hesitantly reached up around Tadashi's shoulders and clung to his jacket. Hiro buried his face into Tadashi's shoulder and sobbed.

"I wanna die, oni-san. I don't wanna _be here anymore_." the twelve year old wailed. "I wanna die…" Tadashi rocked him gently, ever mindful of the cords that were necessary for his baby brother's vital signs.

He started humming a soft nameless tune and his hand never stopped carding soothingly through Hiro's hair. Even after the younger boy's wails had turned to sobs and the sobs had drifted off into stuffy snores as the medication kicked in again. Despite the dead weight the sixteen year old didn't move from his position on the bed, cradling his brother to his chest.

Tadashi didn't want to let go of his little brother ever again.

Tenderly, the teenager kissed the forehead resting against his neck. "You don't know this yet, baby brother, but I'm _never giving up on you_." he whispered, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. "I'm not leaving you behind again. I'll be with you every step of the way. _I promise._"

Tadashi knew that he'd have to say this again and again until it stuck when Hiro was awake, but for now… For now… he'd stay right here.

After all, he'd nearly lost his little brother the other day. He wasn't going anywhere.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:<strong>_Hey guys! Thank you so much for the 400+ reviews! It means the world to me! As if becoming very common, BIG THANK YOU'S GO TO MELANIE-MARCH FOR CATCHING SO MANY OF MY MISTAKES, WITHOUT HER, THIS WOULD BE MUCH MORE CONFUSING!

Also, if you wanna do fan art for this story, GO AHEAD! Just make sure to send me a link so I can squeal and dance in excitement with you all! (TTUTT) You're all so wonderful to me.

Big thanks also go tooo: TridentTatto, Melanie-March, zestychicken2, HuntingStarlight, Escaping The Shadow, CrazyCartoonistOtaku, saveyour950, Epic, PAPERCROW, baileymermaid95, Purpalz Miner, The Golden Marauder, teengens, sherlywherlylock, Turquisea, Kristny10, DreamweaverAki, Guest (#1), Silverstream, regularshow565m Disneynerdbh6, The Real Mystery Writer (yes, it is alright to cry), Phinbellafan2298, seems-pretty-legit, WriterGurl11, JackFrost14, Sushi Hawkeye, Ellamena, Shoyzz, Guest (#2), DreamGirll, Guest (#3), Narniac4aslan (sweetie, I love your entusiasm for this story! Don't freak out about suggesting things! They're wonderfull pieces of feedback for me ^w^), TooLazyToLogin, BlueD, Narniac4Aslan (hullo again! And ooh thats a very good point. *is hit right in the feels*), imnoprincesFYI, Guest (#4) (...?), Marvel Mistress94, Pheonix, PF, Arianandxaia, KanaMac, Guest (#5), RazzlePazzleDooDot (ARE YOU KIDDING ME, OF COURSE I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THEM! NO MATTER THE QUALITY!), Alice, aaand SoraingOnWings (hah? You okay friend?) !

*hands out tissues and cookies, alongside a magical potion that turns into desired drink*


	16. Chapter 16

_**Till I'm Gone**_

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Sixteen<strong>

* * *

><p>"Nii-san," Hiro made a vain attempt at keeping the tremors that showed his thin patience out of his voice. "I understand that you're... worried. Believe me, it's very hard to ignore... er... not see." He rubbed his temples as he continued. "However, I have one <em>small<em> request to make, if that's alright with you."

Tadashi beamed at him from across the room, waiting with his arms open on the other side of the bed. "What's that, otouto?" He questioned brightly.

"Stop. Touching. Me." Hiro bit out in reply, glaring daggers at his brother.

The wounded puppy dog look that Tadashi sent him made him shudder. He _had _to put his foot down! He couldn't remain in his older brother's arms _forever_, now could he? He needed his space and Tadashi was _smothering _him in affection. It was driving him nuts!

Soft footfalls reached his ears and Hiro backed away from his brother, who was walking towards him with outstretched arms, that pleading look still plastered to his face.

"I don't want another hug, Tadashi! I said no!" Hiro snapped, eyes looking wildly around the room for an escape route. Tadashi crept closer and Hiro spotted a way out. It was in range of his older brother's octopus arms, though. But if he was fast enough, logically speaking, he _could _get past him if he ran hard enough.

Tadashi was nearly close enough to grab him by force by the time he'd calculated the best way of going through with his not so thought out plan. With a deep breath, Hiro quickly darted to the side and around his older brother's grabby hands as they dove to nab him. Quickly, he palmed his hands onto the bed and vaulted over it, wincing as his still raw wrist stung painfully at the movement. His bare feet hit the floor running, and pretty soon he'd plastered himself on the opposite side of the room, back flat against the wall.

"Bad Tadashi. Bad." Hiro pointed a shaky finger at his pouting older brother, as if he were scolding an overly affectionate Great Dane that would bowl you over at any moment in an attempt to gift your face with slobbery kisses.

"But Hirrrooooo~!" Tadashi wailed softly. "You need to get back in bed! You're not supposed to be up yet!"

Hiro bristled. "I said I'm fine, you idiot! It's not like I can do anything in this room!"

Tadashi's face darkened. "Hiro. Get back into bed, please."

The twelve year old fought back a flinch and held his ground. "No. I'm fine! I don't even get why you're so concerned about this anyways! I've said it over and over again that I'm fine but _no one believes me!_"

Tadashi had his eyes closed and he was slightly trembling. "Just saying words doesn't mean that you actually mean it, Hiro." he said softly and this time Hiro really did flinch, hitting his head against the wall.

"S-So? I don't wanna get back in bed, Ni-san. I'm bored out of my mind! I need to move, stretch my legs!"

"Should've thought about that before you _tried to kill yourself._" Tadashi said solemnly, finally deciding it would be pertinent to catch his wayward younger brother again before he could get into any trouble.

"Tadashi, I- gyaaaaack-" Hiro dove for the door. Tadashi dove for him. Tadashi won.

"Cmon, otouto. You're going to bed." Tadashi spoke nonchalantly as Hiro kicked and squirmed, tucked under his arm like a football.

"Tadashi! Put me _down!_" Hiro shouted, feet kicking at the air. The twelve year old let out a frustrated grunt and finally just grew limp, admitting defeat in the face of his older brother's stronger arms. That grunt turned into a startled 'woah!' as Tadashi suddenly plopped him down on the bed, the covers already drawn back and ready for him. Hiro let out a resigned and put upon sigh as Tadashi gently pushed him down into the pillows and tucked the blanket up to his chin.

Immediately after his brother had let go of the blanket, Hiro squirmed around to get his trapped arms out from underneath the suffocating covers. "Stop being such a mother hen!" he grumbled, turning onto his side so he didn't have to look at his older brother's pouting face. "I don't even get why you're still here. You've missed, like, two days of school already. It looks like you plan on going on for a third. It's been five days, Nii-san. I'm _fine_."

Because he was facing away from his brother, Hiro completely missed how Tadashi's face darkened and his hand fisted. What he _didn't_ miss was the knuckles that dug entirely too hard into the top of his skull and rubbed hard and fast against his fluffy tangle of hair.

"_Ow ow ow ow ow ow! _Tadashi what the he_-_" Hiro whirled back around and froze in place at the sight of tears streaming down his older brother's face.

"You idiot! Just because you aren't hooked to any IVs or heart monitors, doesn't mean you're _fine_." Tadashi's hands made air quotes around the word 'fine', his voice shaky and choked with tears. Hiro shifted, hands pulling up the covers to his chin defensively.

"But I _am_, Tadashi! You don't - you don't have to worry! I promise I'll stay here in bed, if you'll go to school." Hiro attempted to bargain.

"And leave you all alone? Without _supervision_?" Tadashi's voice squeaked high in his anxiety, shaking hands reaching up to pull at normally neat black hair. Hiro rolled his brown eyes with a scowl.

"_Tadashi_. They _did _take me off of 24 hour watch, after all."

"Doesn't mean that you won't try something." Tadashi muttered. Hiro flinched and his older brother's dark eyes narrowed.

"Hiro."

Hiro tried to plaster a look of innocence on his face. "What's wrong Nii-san?"

Tadashi's face was turning bright red. He opened his mouth, just about to say something when a hesitant knock reached both Hamada's ears.

"WHAT?"

"CAN WE HELP YOU?"

The poor nurse flinched back at the volume the two Hamada brother's let loose and nervously pointed to the cart she had with her. "Breakfast?" she stammered.

Hiro brightened. "Awesome!" he moved to get out of the bed but Tadashi's firm hand halted him before he could even sit up.

Tadashi gave him a stern look. "You. Bed. Stay." he pointed a finger at Hiro's chest, to which the boy batted it away with a disgusted groan.

"You're such a mother hen, Nii-san!"

"Because someone has to do it." Tadashi muttered, before molding his face into something a little more pleasant for the poor nurse. "Sorry about that. What's on the menu for today?"

"U-um… Waffles?" the petrified nurse stammered.

Tadashi nodded. "I'll make sure he eats it all then." And then he waited.

The nurse started, realizing he was waiting to be handed a tray and moved to get it for him. "S-Sorry!"

Tadashi gently took the tray and smiled at her. "You're fine. What's your name, by the way?"

"S-Sally." the nurse stammered.

Tadashi nodded again, his smile widening. "Thank you, Sally." Then he turned around and put the tray down on the table, his eyes examining the contents of the grey plastic.

His face darkened again and suddenly his hand snapped down and grabbed something off of the tray. "SEE THIS, HIRO?!"

Hiro glanced over, having sat up once Tadashi had left his side and groaned, flopping back down and tossing his arm across his eyes melodramatically. "Oh my gosh, Nii-san. Stop it. I've told you! I'm _fin-_"

"YOU ARE NOT FINE, HIRO!" Tadashi's screech came at an unholy pitch. "YOU COULD HURT YOURSELF WITH THIS!" In his hand, he held a plastic knife.

Hiro uncovered his face and gave the plastic knife an inquisitive glance, considering it. "Hmmm… great idea." he grinned darkly at his brother. "Thanks, Nii-san."

Tadashi nearly had a heart attack. In a flash he had dropped the knife to clutch at his baby brother, practically sobbing in his panic.

"Nii-san, I think it's you who needs to be in the psych ward, not me." Hiro grumbled, trying to shove Tadashi's tear stained face away from his shoulder. "Jeez, it was just a _joke_. Stop overreacting!"

"How am I overreacting? Tell me how, when that's what got you in here in the first place!" By this time, Tadashi had managed to grab Hiro's shoulders and was shaking him. "I can't lose you, too, Hiro! Don't make me be the only one left!"

Hiro stared blankly at the wall as Tadashi pulled him into another hug. Hm… he'd never thought of that. Tadashi remembered the accident that had taken away their mom and dad. Of course it would hurt him if Hiro was gone. But… wouldn't it be better anyways? If he just left to meet up with _them _again? It wasn't fair that _Tadashi_ was the only one to know them, after all.

But Hiro didn't dare to voice these thoughts. Not after Tadashi's little freakout over him. Rolling his eyes, the twelve year old connected gazes with the poor nurse (Sally, wasn't it?) who looked about ten seconds away from passing out.

'Sorry.' Hiro mouthed to her and jerked his head in a dismissive motion. He shooed a hand at her for good measure. In a daze, the nurse known as Sally nodded and slowly backed out of the room. The squeak of the cart's wheels soon faded away from Hiro's hearing. He sighed and focused back on his captor.

"Honestly, Nii-san." he sighed. "You really need to go back to school. Think about all the work you're missing - on the first days of your new classes too!"

Tadashi just hugged him tighter. "You come first." he muttered into Hiro's shoulder. "I'm not making you last ever again. You're my baby brother, you'll always be my first priority."

Hiro felt his heart constrict and he closed his eyes, inwardly cursing Tadashi and his way with words. He'd… almost believed him, that time. The hugging and clinging dragged on, driving every nerve of his up the wall. He wiggled experimentally and Tadashi's arms reflexively tightened around his upper back and shoulders.

Ugh. How do you get an older brother turned burr off? And away for that matter.

"Tadashi, you're smothering me again. Get. Off." Hiro hissed through gritted teeth, arms pinned to his chest as he tried pushing his older brother away from him. Tadashi remained firmly latched on.

"Nooooo!" Tadashi wailed, smooshing his cheek against Hiro's head and rubbing frantically. "If you do that you'll do something stupid and have to stay longer!"

Hiro groaned. All of this affection was driving him _nuts_. It was a constant thing when Tadashi was triggered into limpet mode. The elder Hamada did it so much, it was making Hiro feel claustrophobic!

Months of having to make do with barely a pat on the head made this entire situation very hard to deal with. He needed _space _to breath and Tadashi's clinging _wasn't doing him any favors._ It was going to drive him insane.

"Okay. _Okay_. How about you sit on my bed, then? That way, I don't leave it." Hiro bargained, attempting to push his brother away again and ultimately failing.

A cough caught the struggling Hamada brothers off guard and they both froze. In his wriggling, Hiro had managed to grab onto Tadashi's cheeks and began to use them as a pushing off point, so both brothers were bent at awkward angles when they had frozen. Hiro craned his head and grinned brightly at the new comer.

"Dr. Ginea! Hi!" Hiro brightly greeted his doctor. Finally! Someone who'd be able to free him from the clingy clutches from his brother!

"Hello, Hiro." The tall, black haired doctor nodded at his young patient before his laser beam brown eyes zoned in on Tadashi. "Tadashi, if you're going to cause your younger brother to make as much noise as you have, I must insist on your leaving for the day."

Tadashi wilted while Hiro let out a mental cheer.

_Yes, please!_ the twelve year old thought, nearly dizzy from the prospect of peace that suddenly loomed over him.

But Tadashi didn't leave, he just let go of his little brother and sulked to the uncomfortable plastic hospital chair. "Yes sir…" came the quiet murmur as the teen slumped down on it.

Hiro shrugged and flopped down on the bed with a relieved sigh. Finally! Room to actually spread out!

The twelve year old glanced over at his doctor, who observed the two sulking brothers with an amused air. Making sure Tadashi wasn't looking, Hiro mouthed 'save me!' and pointed to his brother with wide, pleading eyes. Dr. Ginea snorted and motioned to his cell phone discretely, brushing his lab coat aside slightly in the process. The younger Hamada nodded fervently in reply.

"You boys behave yourselves." the medical man instructed, and he snuck away. Tadashi only had worried eyes for Hiro. The twelve year old rolled his brown eyes and gave his older brother a Look as he got up from his seat.

"Tadashi, please just sit on the bed if you're going to come over here." Hiro groaned. Tadashi pouted.

"But Hiro~!" He moaned, careful to keep his voice quiet lest Dr. Ginea actually enact on his threat. He obediently sat down on the edge of the bed though, making Hiro flop down in relief. Then the boy sat up, a thought causing his youthful brown eyes to widen.

"Tadashi, does Aunt Cass even _know _that you're here?" Hiro asked, a grin starting to grow on his face as Tadashi flinched slightly, fingers twitching as if he were fighting the urge to pull Hiro close.

"She doesn't? Oh, that's rich!" Hiro started laughing. "Just watch, when Aunt Cass gets here, she's gonna kill you!"

Close to tears once more, Tadashi clung to Hiro's arm. "Please don't call Aunt Cass!" He begged over Hiro's laughter.

"Too late, Tadashi! Dr. Ginea's calling her right now!" Hiro sang gleefully. "You're gonna be in so much trouble~!"

Tadashi groaned, burying his face into his little brother's shoulder. "Yeah, yeah, I got that the first time, Hiro."

Hiro let out a series of loud cackles at his big brother's discomfort. "Shoulda thought it through before you skipped for two days straight~!"

"I don't care. School can go rot in a dumpster for all that I don't care." Tadashi's voice was muffled but it still made Hiro freeze mid cackle. The younger Hamada tossed his brother an incredulous look.

"Who are you, and what have you done to my brother? You can't get into college when you've got bad attendance records!"

"Hiro." Tadashi stated seriously. "You're more important than getting into college. You're more important than anything that can come in the future, because you're my _brother._"

The twelve year old wanted to tear out his fluffy hair. "But you need an education so when you move out - don't look at me like that _Nii-San! _You're going to move out eventually, so you need to plan for it!"

Tadashi shook his head. "Hiro, planning is all well and good but when it gets so big that I start ignoring the little things, then I have a problem. I had that problem and I'm not going to let it overcome me again!"

"I need space too, ya know!" Hiro bristled. "And I'm not little!"

Tadashi looked confused. "What? It's just an expression! Hiro, what I'm trying to say is that I was busy looking at the future when I should have been paying more attention to the things happening in the present. Like you getting bullied."

Hiro flinched back. "T-Tadashi, I - what are you talking about!" Hiro gave a self conscious laugh. "I wasn-"

"Hiro." Tadashi's voice was pained and it made the twelve year old freeze, grin held weakly in place. "I saw the videos."

Hiro felt his face drain of color. "You... what?" his voice went squeaky and high pitched as he fought to keep breathing.

Tadashi gathered him up close and this time, Hiro didn't protest. "I saw the videos. I swear, I'm going to hunt down this Andrews, and his stupid cronies - and I am going to make sure they _pay._"

Hiro shivered at the darkness in his older brother's words. "Tadashi - no! Don't, they're not worth it! It's my fault-"

Tadashi's arms tightened around him. "Don't ever say that, Hiro. It's _never _your fault!" the sixteen year old gently pushed at his little brother's shoulders so he could look Hiro straight in the eye. "It's not your fault. It's _theirs_. And I'm going to make them pay for what they've done to you."

Hiro felt tears well up in his eyes. He was so confused! Why was Tadashi being so nice? Why was he saying all of these things? He was supposed to not care about what happened to him!

"Why are you doing this?" Hiro whispered, sounding lost and conflicted. "Tadashi, I... I don't understand it at all!

Tadashi silently pulled Hiro close to him and gently tucked Hiro's head under his chin. "You don't have to right now. Just know that I'm here for you now, Otouto. I'm not going to leave you."

Hiro sniffed softly, trembling hands slowly reaching up to as if to grasp at Tadashi's shirt. They hung there, unsure before Tadashi's larger hands gently pushed them against his chest, right over his steadily beating heart.

"But… what if you do?" he whispered, suddenly fearful. "What if you leave me?"

Tadashi kissed Hiro's temple. "Not going to happen, I promise bonehead."

Hiro curled deeper into Tadashi's embrace as the tears began to fall, softly, silently. The only way you could tell he was crying was by the slight shake of his shoulders, and the dampness of his cheeks and where Tadashi's shoulder met with one of those cheeks.

Tadashi wrapped his arms around his little brother a little tighter and rocked him back and forth. His mind searched desperately for the words he had once sung in situations like this when Hiro had woken him up at three in the morning after a nightmare and he couldn't go back to sleep. He hummed a few bars and then frowned, shaking his head. No... that wasn't it. How did it go again?

Oh yeah.

* * *

><p>"<em>Hush now my little one, hush<em>

_be still as dreams take your sleep_

_let me watch o'r you and let _

_your smiles come to be._

_Rest now my little one, rest_

_and lay your head down to sleep_

_I will watch o'r you_

_And protect your dreams_

_till morning is nigh._

_Darkness may creep_

_and darkness may fight._

_But you lay under my watch tonight_

_So sleep my baby brother, sleep._

_I'll stay till morning light."_

* * *

><p>Hiro sleepily stirred in his arms. "You haven't sung that… in a while…" he yawned sleepily. Tadashi chuckled.<p>

"How about you go to sleep, buddy." Tadashi suggested quietly. Half asleep already, Hiro didn't protest when Tadashi picked him up and tucked him back into bed. Tadashi sat down on the edge of the bed and let out a sad sigh.

"Tadashi?"

The teen in question flinched in surprise and turned guilty eyes towards the door, where Aunt Cass stood.

He waved weakly. "Hi Aunt Cass…"

"Can we talk? _Outside?_" she asked. Tadashi hung his head and stood up. Yeah… he was in _so _much trouble…

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_*falls over* Man! At the rate you guys review, we'll be at 500 at the end of this chapter O.O this has never happened to me before (the shocks returning lol) Thank you soooo much everyone! (PS if someone could draw a comic based off of the scene where Tadashi and Hiro are talking about the knife, you would make my LIFE, just add in the knife knife in the air before it falls and I will LOVE YOU FOREVER IM NOT JOKING)

Anyways, the beginning part of this chapter was written by the lovely Melanie-March (my lovely editor TTUTT i'm so lucky to have her~) as I was completely stumped on how to get Tadashi out of the hospital room (which happens in chapter 17 YES), so until "The wounded puppy dog look…" is all her wonderful writing. Also, Melanie is writing a fic based off of this where Hiro actually manages to escape his room (It's beautiful, I've been laughing ever since the first page). She's asked me to insert it as a second chapter, I hope everyone has enjoyed it as much as I have! Also, thanks to AmyXRoseXMoon since she joined in on our planning session and we've all laughed ourselves silly in this chapter, and was a wonderful unbaised third party when me and Melanie were conflicted on an editing decision. So THANK YOU AMY!

NOW! Onto thanks! Big thanks go too: Blue-D, ArianandXaia, WriterGurl11, Phinbellafan2298, regularshow565, DreamweaverAki, TridentTattoo, AmyXRoseXMoon, TooLazyToLogin, seems-pretty-legit, JarrettSoon, disneybrony, Guest (#1), KanaMac, Shoyzz, Marvel Mistress94, CrazyCartoonistOtaku, Cori the Freak-of-nature, mog the 13th moogle, guest (#2), animesbff, Purpalz Miner, DreamGirll, narniac4aslan, Thelastone, kartoonfreek99, thetimehasturned3, sherlywherlylock, bumblebee78, Snowflake, The Golden Marauder, PrincessWilla202, Disney Girl 26, Guest (#3), SoaringOnWings, The Real Mystery Writer, Disneynerdbh6, The DiamondSword400, Evagelion Hill, Silverstream, Guest (#4), Madness Shared, Sushi Hawkeye, BrokenWings2602, Blackwind137, Fairytale Warrior, h, Guest (#5), DarthRexPoke44, CookieKittys, nataeiy1, ParanoidSylph, Atariel Tsukai, aaaand DisneyandWildKrattfangirl!


	17. Chapter 16 5 - Escape

_**Till I'm Gone SHORT: Escape**_

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><p><em>Melanie-March<em>

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><p><strong>Chapter 16.5<strong>

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><p>Tadashi <em>missed<em>. Absolutely, utterly _missed._

He couldn't believe it at first, but the door clicking shut behind him confirmed the horrible truth: He'd miscalculated Hiro's angle of escape and his brother just barely skidded past him and out the door.

Turning to face the door in question, he glared at it for a moment, as if silently scolding it for providing Hiro with an escape to begin with. Then, sighing heavily, he opened the door and stepped out into the hall. He had a limited window of opportunity to catch Hiro and _a lot_ of ground to cover. Knowing his brother, he would be at least down the hall by now.

* * *

><p>Freedom! Fresh air and windows lining the hallways! Had anything ever been more beautiful to Hiro? Jamming his hands into the deep pocket of his jeans, the adolescent attempted a casual walk to the elevator. All he needed was fifteen minutes to stretch his legs and then, he'd go right back to his room, he promised himself.<p>

Yeah, right.

Fifteen minutes? That was waaaaay too short, and he knew that all too well. Maybe twenty or thirty would do, but a mere fifteen? Nah, that was hardly worth the trouble he'd gone through escaping.

"HIROOOOOOOOO!" The shout of his name that echoed down the hallway startled the teen and he risked a glance over his shoulder... only to find Tadashi barreling after him like a large Great Dane.

"Ack!" He cried as Tadashi neared (bringing with him a doctor and two nurses), and he began to run. It appeared as though playtime was over.

"HIRO, GET BACK HERE AND GET INTO BED!" Tadashi shouted behind him, his voice wailing. "HIROOOOOOOOO!"

"You gotta be kidding me!" Hiro whined to himself as he dodged the hands of hospital staff (for, by now, most everyone realized he was an escapee). Sliding around a corner and ditching the elevator idea, he scanned his surroundings for a stairwell.

_No, no, no, no, no! _Nearing a dead end with no stairs in sight, Hiro was close to admitting defeat. Tadashi was so close... he could feel the elder Hamada barely missing grabbing his jacket each time he reached out.

* * *

><p>Hiro suddenly turned left and Tadashi slammed into the wall his younger brother had narrowly avoided. "DAMN!" He shouted as the door to the stairwell closed. Kid was fast... but he needed more than speed on his side to escape Tadashi.<p>

Wasting no time, Tadashi followed Hiro into the stairwell and descended, chasing furiously after that taunting body that kept just out of his grasp.

Eventually, though, he became tired of chasing, and decided to end this little game, even if it put him in bed beside Hiro (he didn't think he would mind the pain of they were beside one another anyway). He vaulted himself over the railing and landed square on his feet in front of the 12 year old, who had been five steps from the freedom that the ground floor provided.

Hiro rammed into Tadashi's chest and they both let out an "oof!" As the force pushed them against the wall. Tadashi's arms immediately encased his younger sibling in a crushing hug.

"Got... got you..." he panted, exhaling as he rested against the wall.

Hiro pouted up at him and Tadashi smirked. Yeah, Tadashi had missed. Unfortunately, though, he rarely LOST.

**_END._**

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><p><em><strong>Author's Note: Hey y'all, Melanie-March here! So, Sora-san and I were talking and we really wanted something as a sort of alternative to the "Hiro dove for the door. Tadashi dove for him. Tadashi won." scene in chapter 16 of <strong>__**Till I'm Gone.**_ _**She requested I write something with only "Tadashi missed." as my prompt, and this little comic relief of an extra was born! I hope you all enjoyed it, because I did. This is a wonderful fanfic and I hope to be able to construct more of these little extras for Sora-san. Happy reading!**_

_**- Melanie**_


	18. Chapter 17

_**Till I'm Gone**_

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><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Seventeen<strong>

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><p>Warning for Tadashi's mouth in the final scene, and onesided!Fredashi<p>

* * *

><p>"Tadashi, what were you thinking?! Skipping school while I'm off at the cafe under a surprise inspection by the REHS?!" Aunt Cass sighed wearily, trembling fingers fumbling with the task of opening the bag of vending machine cookies. "Honestly, Tadashi! I expect <em>more<em> from you!"

Tadashi winced and looked down.

The bag opened noisily. "I would have let you stay another day if you hadn't skipped without telling me, sweetheart." Aunt Cass said, voice slightly muffled by the cookies in her mouth.

Tadashi couldn't meet her eyes. "Sorry, Aunt Cass…"

"Do you know how long I've been eating since I got the call saying that you'd skipped not only once - but _twice_?! Do you?!"

The sixteen year old opened his mouth but nothing could escape his lips in the face of her disapproval.

"I've been stress eating for - _five days_! Because of you boys! You both are going to make me gain ten pounds!" she shook the bag at him for emphasis, cheeks slightly rounded with all the cookies inside.

"I'm sorry…" Tadashi whispered, looking at his feet. "I just… I couldn't… I couldn't bear the thought of not knowing if he was okay or not… If he…" he broke off, choking slightly on a quiet sob.

Aunt Cass' angry facade broke as she pulled her considerably taller nephew down and into a hug. He crumpled into her arms and she held him as the tears fell again, soaking her blue sweater.

"Tadashi… I know it's hard. And I know that you feel that if you leave, he'll just disappear on you. Believe me, _I know_. But we haven't lost him yet, and we won't lose him now. The doctors will make sure of it." she murmured, gently combing his short black hair with her hand in a soothing repetition before pulling away slightly so she could lock green eyes with his teary dark brown. "Will you please go to school, so you can at least collect your homework for both of you?"

Tadashi wilted. "But…" he sighed, closing his mouth with a resigned grimace. Aunt Cass chuckled, acknowledging that her nephew had conceded to her plan at last.

"Go on, Tadashi. You're missing enough class as it is." she scolded gently. Tadashi sent her a wounded look up slowly complied, pulling away from her embrace fully.

Aunt Cass felt her heart melt, the cracks in her chest making the warmth sting slightly. She had almost lost one of her boys… She wasn't going to take either one of them for granted. "Oh… Last hug!" she sighed, pulling him back towards her and throwing her arms around him. Tadashi's strength wrapped around her as dropped a kiss on her head, being tall enough to do so.

Her boys were growing so fast… Aunt Cass reflected wryly. One minute they were a pair of tiny limbs and scrawny faces begging for donuts before dinner and then the next she had blinked and Tadashi had flowered into a gangly teenager with big ears that looked awkward on his face and Hiro was losing his chub, but only slightly. She had blinked again and Tadashi was suddenly so tall and broad shouldered and Hiro's voice was starting to fluctuate. The quick changes made her dizzy and she was beginning to feel her age catching up to her.

"You drive safely, Tadashi." she instructed, voice still soft from reflection and the overwhelming sense of love that filled her bosom.

"I will." came the subdued answer as her eldest hugged her a little tighter, "I love you, Aunt Cass."

Aunt Cass would never get tired of hearing those three words from her nephews. To think that she could have never heard them from her youngest again… it made her shudder. "I love you too - now get!" she lightly hit his shoulder and made a shooing motion with her hands. "You have school to go to!"

"Yes Aunt Cass…" Tadashi said, truly resigned to defeat.

Aunt Cass watched him slowly make his way down the hall with a sad smile, hand over her heart as it ached at the sight. Oh her boys… so wounded from life… She turned towards the door that held her youngest as soon as her eldest had gone around the corner and was out of sight.

The weary cafe owner walked quietly over and pulled up a seat by his bedside. She'd already had the cafe closed for a few hours, the rest of the day wouldn't hurt. Her boys needed her here.

She watched the rise and fall of her youngest's chest, his youthful face smoothed out by sleep and she felt the tears that she'd been keeping suppressed for five days finally come as her eyes stung.

"Oh baby…" she whispered, brushing back his bangs from his closed eyes, drying tears dusting his eyelashes. "We nearly lost you. Please don't make us a family of two… I couldn't _bear _it if I had to put another casket in the g-grou-nd…" she cut herself off as the dam broke. Cass buried her face in her hands and started to sob.

Hiro's chest rose and fell in needed slumber.

* * *

><p>The sounds of students talking floated up from the gates and drifted over to reach Tadashi's ears from his spot of leaning against the car. It was passing period then; he'd made it just in time for second period. The sixteen year old took in a deep breath of the warming morning air and willed himself to take a step forward.<p>

His feet remained firmly rooted where they were. Tadashi wanted to throw himself back into the driver's seat and speed all the way to the hospital where he could hug his little brother tight. And yet… The teen was torn between pleasing Aunt Cass and following the instinct to cling to his baby brother.

One one hand, if he stayed, there would be no reason for Aunt Cass or Hiro to be mad at him for going back on his promise (and though he wasn't so worried about their Aunt, he shuddered at the horrific thought of upsetting his dearest brother).

On the other, Tadashi really, really wanted to be able to have that reassurance that he _wasn't _alone; that he wasn't the only Hamada left. He let his head fall back onto the car with a sigh.

"Come on, stupid… it's just _school_. A school that convinced your brother to attempt suicide, but hey, that's _no big deal_…"

And suddenly, Tadashi was pissed off. Very, very pissed off. The noise of his fellow students chatting morphed from mere background noise to an annoying roar. The sixteen year old narrowed his eyes at his school and felt a scowl start to grow on his face.

A memory stirred from the depths of his mind, howling like a fierce gale tunneling its way through a valley.

* * *

><p>"<em>Let's take him swimming, guys."<em>

* * *

><p>Tadashi closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. He had promised Hiro that he would make the ones responsible pay. And this was one promise that he wasn't going to back out of. He <em>would <em>bring those who had driven his little brother to depression to justice, even if he had to knock a few heads together to get it.

Looked like he was staying then.

Taking another deep breath, Tadashi stepped away from the car. His long legs ate up the distance between him and the school until he stood at the gates. Instead of heading straight inside, though, the teen turned and walked towards the attendance office. He _had _missed a period, after all…

The door opened easily and Tadashi slipped into the office. A secretary looked up. "Can I help you?" she questioned.

Tadashi grimaced, hand reaching up to scratch at the back of his neck sheepishly. "Ah… yeah… Hi. Uh, I need to sign in, cause I'm late and everything…" he trailed off with an exhalation of breath. _Man, this is so awkward… _There were two reasons he never skipped periods. This was one of them. (Disappointing Aunt Cass was the other but shhh! No one was supposed to know that!)

The secretary raised an eyebrow at the obviously nervous teen. "Alright…" she replied slowly, "Name and reason for being late?" She turned to the computer expectantly, waiting to input the information.

Tadashi sighed heavily, gut clenching at the mere thought of the reason why he had made the decisions he had in the past five days. "Tadashi Hamada. Hospital, for a family emergency." he said shortly through clenched teeth. He wanted to get this done and over with so he could get on with his day and return to Hiro.

The secretary's eyes grew wide as her ears informed her brain on just who she was checking into school. "T-Tadashi _H-Hamada_? Our Science _S-Star_? Why are -"

Tadashi never hated his bullheaded interest in the sciences more than he did right then. "Look, Lady. Just - just check me in, _okay_? I've been chased away from the side of a depressed little brother who tried to commit suicide five days ago. I'd prefer to go about my day and pick up any assignments we've missed and probably _will_ miss for the foreseeable future. So if you could be so kind as to check me in so I can _go_?"

The look of startled pity did not help his already frayed temper. It took only a minute for the slip of paper to print and be handed to him, but to Tadashi, it felt like an age had passed from the click of the mouse to the start up of the tiny little printer.

"Thanks." He said to the woman gruffly. He knew he was being uncharacteristically rude but at this point, Tadashi really just didn't care. The bell rang just as he exited the office, pass in hand. A dark, forbidding scowl was on his face, and it appeared as though it would take a miracle to get it off again. That miracle came in the form of a beanie wearing geek who was too absorbed in his comic to really pay attention to where he was going.

* * *

><p><em>-But it was a trap! Her teammates had betrayed her! Midnight Disco was alone in the fight against her arch nemesis - the Grave Dr. Don Rule! Alone, Midnight Disco was at a loss for how to escape, but escape she must! For if Dr. Don Rule succeeded in his plans, the whole world would be under his mind control and darkness would overtake the hearts of mankind, outlawing all that was good and kind in the world - including love! <em>

_Struggling under the weight of despair, the superhero attempted to look for a solution. Eyes wide under her mask, her heart palpitating in her throat, she saw her way out! It was - _

Fred Lee's nose was squashed against a suddenly hard comic book, and he fell back with a startled yelp of "Holy Megazon!"

The introduction of his butt to Mr. Ground was harsh and very, very painful.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was walking, are you alright?"A warm voice reached the comic geek's ears, and wincing slightly, Fred looked up to see Perfection in human form. A strong jaw, warm brown eyes beautifully shaped by a dual heritage, and _mmmm_… look at those broad shoulders…

Fred blinked, finding that the guy he'd crashed into was waving a hand in front of his face, concern deeply entrenched in the other's expression. Belatedly, Fred realized that he had been staring at the angel in a green jacket and shook his head to clear it.

"I'm okay." he assured the fellow teen he'd bumped into. _C'mon Fred, knock it off, your bisexual is showing! _he scolded himself. _You can't oogle hot guys - especially when you crash into one of the most _delectable _of samples - _NO! _Bad Fred! Bad! He's probably got a girlfriend anyways. I mean, with features like _those _who _wouldn't _want a piece of that?_

Back in the reality outside of Fred's rather gooey thoughts, the subject of the comic book enthusiast's mental compliments gave him an incredulous look and put out a hand to help Fred up. "If you say so. Anyways… I gotta go, I'm late and I need to pick up assignments from… Mrs. Peru."

Fred's eyes lit up as he got to his feet. "No way! This is like predestination! I'm headed that way too! Can I join you in your stroll towards her class?" _Please say yes, please say yes, you're too beautiful for me to let go… _

The other teen looked rather perplexed at his speaking mannerisms, but that was fine and dandy in Fred's book. The tall Japanese-American gave a shrug with those broad shoulders of his. "Eh, why not? I hardly know where any of my classrooms are anyways." he said wryly. " Haven't been able to find them since I've been absent since the beginning of this term."

Fred was curious, but the dark look in the other's eyes made him decide not to press the issue. Whatever the reason, it was pretty obvious that it was personal and Fred didn't want to make the guy he'd just met angry. That would be like, totally not cool.

They walked in the direction of Mrs. Peru's class in a silence that wasn't quite comfortable, but wasn't awkward, either. It just… was. Fred actually enjoyed it. It wasn't every day that he actually had someone just willing to be _by _him now that his _creeper _of a cousin had chased away any chance at having friends. Maybe he could actually win this guy over…

Fred's expression turned into one of both great wistfulness and self depreciation. Nah… this guy would never give him a second glance. He was lucky that the other was even letting him walk with him, what with all the nasty rumors that had been spread around and treated as truth by the school population in his cousin's mad attempt of destroying any self esteem he had left.

...it was kinda working. If this kid didn't know… was completely oblivious to the rumors… then just maybe he had a chance at giving his phedophilic cousin his favorite finger, just by living the way _he _wanted to. Fred shivered, mind unconsciously brushing over a memory he kept down under lock and key. It made him sick to his stomach.

"Hey, is this it?" Fred's companion asked, breaking Fred out of his musings with a jerk. The comic book enthusiast looked at the numbers and nodded. "Yeah. We're just in time too."

The second bell rang and Fred let out a sigh, squaring his shoulders. Great, time to face the music. It was a pity, because Creative Writing _should _have been one of his favorite classes, but because of the people in there… it wasn't.

Fred opened the door and beckoned his tentatively termed friend into the classroom with a flamboyant bow that nearly knocked off his beanie due to the laws of gravity still applying. The teen chuckled and then took in a deep breath, making Fred wonder if they sharing the experience of having an anxious feeling creating an upset stomach like he certainly was.

Then Fred's companion visibly took ahold of himself and entered the room, with Fred close behind. Fred's blue eyes scanned the room and minutely relaxed when he found that no familiar blond head was seen bent over a desk. He was safe for a moment, then…

"Tadashi! And Freddie, oh _little cousin_ of mine, I haven't seen you since, what… three summers ago?" that familiar drawl made Fred flinch as his stomach dropped. His cousin's voice might have been laced with sugary sweetness, but the teen knew the truth.

So much for hoping that his cousin had disappeared and just dropped dead in a ditch… Fred stiffened completely as an arm was casually draped over his shoulders and hooked slightly around his neck, an unwelcome weight on his left side.

But Fred's heart settled as a much more uncomfortable weight in his stomach as it plummeted from his ribcage as it dropped out of his ribcage and into his stomach. His blue eyes grew wide as he stared at the tall broad shouldered Japanese-American that he'd walked with and he felt his breath catch in his throat, because this kid…. this beautiful angel that had let him - an unworthy and quite frankly strange mortal - walk in his divine footsteps… this model of humanity made perfect… was his phedophilic cousin's best friend?

Fred wanted to curl up into a ball and rip out his long blond hair. This wasn't fair! How could someone of such… such… _nobility_ be friends with a guy who - Fred shuddered, swallowing thickly as the dark memory surged up from behind it's padlocked prison to slam at the steel door.

Fred's angel (_Tadashi, his name was Tadashi! The guy HE'D been mooning over just because he _could_) _turned around, confused for only a second as his beautiful brown eyes lit up at the sight of his cousin (_please, no…_ a little voice cried, sounding so young and absolutely _terrified_).

"Hey Thomas! Oh, hey… you're Thomas' cousin? Freddie, right?"

Fred wished for a superpower that could melt him into the floor and never return him to solid form ever again. "It's Fred, actually…." he said quietly.

* * *

><p>Tadashi blinked, before a sheepish smile spread across his face. "Sorry, Fred. Wow! All that time walking, and we totally forgot to introduce each other!" he laughed, rubbing his neck with his hand.<p>

Fred smiled, but it turned out to be more of a grimace as Thomas seemed to _lean_ a little too much on his younger cousin. Tadashi's sheepish emotions sluggishly stirred into a mild form of worry.

But before Tadashi could ask if everything was alright, Fred elbowed his cousin sharply in the ribcage with a hissed "I thought I told you that I _hated_ people touching me!"

Thomas let out a pained wheeze and backed away far enough to be out of Fred's range. "I think three years managed to erase that memory, _Freddie_."

The two cousins glared at each other and Tadashi frowned, something niggling at the back of his mind. Before he could fully expound on the thought, a woman with dark, reddish brown hair called the class to attention. Roll call began as students scrambled to find their seats.

As luck would have it, Tadashi had been placed in between both Fred _and _Thomas. Mrs. Peru gave him a strange look, a well known hilarity and a reason why so many students were excited to be in her class. It was obvious she wasn't expecting anyone to fill the gap.

Tadashi weakly waved the pass in the air and stretched forth his long arm so she didn't have to go too far, then sat back with a wince as her face contorted into one of sympathy. It didn't make him angry, though, there was something in her eyes that made it seem like she wasn't looking down on him. Maybe it was because she didn't know what family emergency it had been but still, that sympathy that told of a kindred spirit took his breath away.

Mrs. Peru nodded solemnly at him and he nodded back, just as solem. "It's good to have you in class, Mr. Hamada."

Tadashi's throat closed in on him and he coughed slightly before whispering a quiet "Thanks".

"Alright! Time for Good News Minute! Anyone want to share?" Mrs. Peru called, and a sudden flurry of hands raising made her snort. "Well it must have been a good two days!"

She called on a bespectacled girl that Tadashi hardly recognized. "U-Um… I'm glad Tadashi's back." she nearly whispered. Tadashi winced, mind flashing back to red flashing in the night and his blood soaked hands. He ached, suddenly and desperately finding the need to hold his little brother close and listen to his heartbeat, just to reassure himself that Hiro hadn't dropped dead when he wasn't looking. But Hiro was at the hospital, sleeping in the care of Aunt Cass, and Tadashi was at school.

Tadashi wasn't glad he was back.

There was a sudden chorus of agreements from the class and Tadashi flinched back as some of the guys (Thomas included) slapped him on the back, cheering. Once, Tadashi would have smiled and laughed at all the affection but now it took all his strength to not jerk away. How many of these guys knew of the videos, how many had said hurtful things to his little brother, in person or behind a blocked out name and face? Tadashi couldn't trust any of them. Not anymore.

A hesitant hand gently brushed against Tadashi's shoulder and the sixteen year old jerked and glanced over at Thomas' younger cousin who was staring at him with concerned blue eyes.

"You okay?" Fred whispered as another student announced that they too were glad for Tadashi's return to the school.

Tadashi shook his head and breathed slowly through his nose. "Not really, but I will be." _Eventually._

Fred nodded but his eyes remained solemn. "Okay… I'm here if you need anything, just to let you know." he told his neighbor in a serious whisper so quiet that Tadashi had to lean in to hear it.

"Thanks Fred, it means alot to me." Tadashi said just as quietly, sensing Fred's wish to remain near silent.

Suddenly, Thomas surged upwards, "Mrs. Peru, can I go to the bathroom, it's an emergency." the seventeen year old senior said with a face contorted into a grimace. Tadashi heard Fred snort under his breath and felt his own eyebrow raise. So soon into the beginning of class? Really?

Mrs. Peru pursed her lips into a pouting frown as she examined the trouble making teen, but just from his entire body language, it looked like he truly and honestly needed to use the restroom. And so she let him go. He never returned to class. Mrs. Peru should have known better, but alas, it was not to be that day.

* * *

><p>Tadashi stormed down the halls like an avenging angel. Fred ran to catch up with him, his breath coming in short gasps.<p>

"Tadashi! Tadashi... wait!" he called, struggling in the crowd that followed in the tall teen's wake. "Tadashi!"

But Tadashi didn't stop, and so Fred had to run and dodge those who were also following their Science Star to whoever had pissed him off _this _time. The halls were silent, a strange, scary thing for Fred as the halls were _never _silent in a crowd. Something had set Tadashi off right as they were walking to the lunchroom, and now, Fred was here and chasing after a boy he'd only known for about an hour and thirty minutes.

The sea of faces followed like a swarm, silent and breathless, and Fred cursed the fact that Tadashi was so far into a headspace that his voice couldn't even be heard, even _with _the silence!

Suddenly, the crowd stopped moving, and Fred nearly crashed into someone's back due to the flow coming to an end. Now, the teen really had to push and shove. He scowled darkly and started using his sharp bony elbows to make Fred-shaped room in the crowd. "Tadashi!" he called as a sudden rising cheer sent chills up his spine. "Tadashi!"

What was going _on_! Fred finally managed to squeeze himself to the front of the crowd and froze as he found himself at the edge of a great circle.

Tadashi had a freshman pinned to one of the lockers, arm digging into the teen's throat. Fred flinched back as memories black as deepest night rammed into the doors guarding him from a full on panic attack. _No, no, no, no, no, no! _he thought frantically. From what he'd seen in Creative Writing, this _wasn't_ the normal Tadashi.

This Tadashi scared him, while the normal Tadashi made him feel… well… _safe _was the only word he could think of that would accurately sum up the boy he had only known for a short while.

The freshman was sobbing and gasping for air. Fred glanced over at Tadashi's face and flinched again. It was completely distorted by hate and anger.

Suddenly, Fred felt a calmness rush over him. He had to get the normal Tadashi back. This Tadashi didn't belong here. It would destroy the true Tadashi inside if he wasn't snapped out of it _now_.

Fred took a steadying breath and tentatively stepped forwards.

* * *

><p>So this was the one who had caused his little brother so much <em>pain.<em> Tadashi stared down at the wheezing and crying _worm_ as he pressed his arm into his windpipe. It was the only thing keeping him pinned and off the ground.

"You nearly killed my little brother." Tadashi informed the worm, digging his arm into trembling flesh a little harder as the fury swelled in his chest like a bellow stoking a forge.

"H-Hammada d-don't!" the insect pleaded through choking gasps, the tears making its eyes grow red and puffy.

Tadashi pulled the worm closer, fisting his hand into its collar and pulling it up higher so it could stare into his eyes. "Do I look _merciful_ to you?" he questioned coldly. The worm shook its head frantically, tears still leaking out of it's puffy eyes. Tadashi continued, "I nearly lost the only link to my old family because of you and your little maggot cronies."

Suddenly he slammed the little worm back into the lockers, making it's head slam into the hollow structures with a cry and a clang of bone meeting metal. "The only reason you aren't lying at my feet and dead, is because my little brother still breathes, maggot." Tadashi breathed into the maggot worm's ear.

It began to sob harder. Tadashi didn't care for it's signs of weakness. It deserved to be scared. It deserved to feel the pain his little brother went through. It deserved _none _of his mercy. He would make the little maggot wish it _had _died at his hand.

Tadashi pulled back a fist and the maggot whimpered, closing its eyes. But the blow never came.

"TADASHI! STOP!"

Thin hands grasped at Tadashi's upraised fist and tugged, then tugged harder as the sixteen year old resisted. The maggot fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Tadashi, I know you're in there but you've got to _stop this_! He's not worth it!"

"Like hell he isn't!" Tadashi snarled, batting at the hands that held him back. "He deserves to go rot in the pits of Hell! He's the one responsible for my brother being in the hospital, too depressed to even accept the idea of living in this miserable hole we call school! And I can't blame him when we have b!#$#!#$ like these maggots swarming the halls of what's supposed to be a safe campus! A place where we can all learn together in peace!" Tadashi let loose a hysterical, angry laugh. "What a _riot_! A safe campus? Really? It's b$%$. Complete and utter b$%$.! My little brother was drugged up to the gills in a hospital bed for _two days straight_, just so he wouldn't jump out the f!##%#$ window!"

Tadashi tried to kick at the worm, but the hands dragged him back and out of range. "It's all his fault!" Tadashi screamed, the tears suddenly falling when they had refused to do so before. "It's all his fault that our family is scrambling to pick up the pieces! We nearly became two instead of three and I would be the only Hamada _left_! Did you want that, you little b -$:&-!, did you want his blood on your hands!?"

"It's not _our _fault that he's such a frickin' brain! I mean, come on, that kid obviously thought he was hot stuff, to come to a high school when he _should_ have just stayed home until he was ready! Hiro's the one at fault!" a kid shouted from out of Tadashi's vision and the arms around his middle tightened as he fought to become upright again.

"Tadashi, no!" another voice yelled, and suddenly, long hair was tickling his neck as he was engulfed in a hug. "No matter how angry you are, _it's not worth it! _You'll get suspended and where will that get you? Look at it from a different angle, there's always another way!"

Tadashi took in a deep, shuddering breath, about to continue fighting when the words pierced his heart, which had hardened with anger. _Another angle? _the teen thought dimly, growing limp as he stared at the teen who lay before him, gasping for breath and clutching at his abused throat.

* * *

><p><em>A protector is one who guards all, Tadashi. I know you have a warrior's spirit, but use that spirit to the benefit of all who come under your watch. Do not act out of anger, but out of compassion. When spurned, offer a hand of kindness. In return, you will receive something better than anything anger can afford, for anger brings with it enemies too hard to defeat.<em>

* * *

><p>Tadashi bowed his head, the tears falling hot and fast as his father's words came to him. He had failed. Like always. But still… there was a better way, one that would not have to deal with violence.<p>

"Let me go, Fred." Tadashi whispered, eyes slowly clearing of tears. Fred flinched and clung tighter to him.

"Are you going to go berserk again? Cause, I-I mean… that was scary as hell, man…" Fred finally admitted.

Tadashi let out a huff and patted Fred on the hand. "I won't, I promise."

And so, with due cause for hesitation, Fred let go of Tadashi and allowed him to get to his feet.

The crowd was silent as they watched their emotionally wrecked Science Star stand up from where he had been dragged away, and held their breaths. What would Hamada do next?

Tadashi approached the trembling freshman, who was curled up in a ball, and stopped a few paces away before he crouched down. "Andrews. You better thank Fred, he saved your life." the teen said coldly. "But you haven't escaped jail and aren't allowed to run around with a new twenty in your pocket, because you know what? I'm going to sue the pants off you. You nearly killed my brother by attempting to drown him in toilet water. And I'm pretty sure there's plenty of _other _bits of evidence that you've carelessly tossed away. I promise you this, Andrews, I will find them and I will crush you with them."

Tadashi stood up, and turned to walk away.

"Tadashi, look out!" Fred's cry of warning and the crowd's dismayed yells were the only warnings that the teen needed before he was spinning around and the pocket knife in Andrew's hand went flying. The freshman clutched at his stinging hand with a yowl before he lunged at Tadashi, who still had his leg outstretched.

But Tadashi was as fluid as a snake and darted around as Andrews overshot and merely stuck out his other foot to trip the kid. The kid fell with a harsh thud, and Tadashi had him pinned.

"I wouldn't move if I were you." Tadashi warned, a dark smile on his lips. "You just messed up in front of the whole school board." he tsked. "Bringing a knife onto school grounds, such a shame… to nearly stab another student with it as well… well… that's grounds for expulsion too. So, I'd just make it easier on yourself and give in."

Andrews slumped to the floor and cursed.

Tadashi looked up and saw Fred give him a tiny nod before the crowd suddenly surged around them and the teachers were yelling at the students to back up and get away. They had this covered.

The boy smirked to himself. Revenge, no matter what form, was rather sweet.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_*falls over* 500+ reviews! Good word! Thank you everyone! Also, I AM SO SORRY FOR THE EIGH DAY HAITUS! The muses and many other contributing factors held me at bay. I even had to write out an argument between me and Tadashi (and it wasn't pretty believe me), just to get him to cooperate in leaving Hiro with Aunt Cass! Also, BIG THANK YOU TO MELANIE-MARCH AS ALWAYS (AND ALSO CURSE YOU BECAUSE YOU DRAGGED ME ONTO THE SHIP SSR FREDASHI KICKING AND SCREAMING SO I HOPE YOURE HAPPY WITH THIS FLUFF THATS BORDERLINE GEN MEL, I REALLY DO)~! (Also go check out her new to be soon posted Fredashi fic A Cage of Fire. It's based in the same universe/similar universe as Till I'm Gone so beware minor slight-ish spoilers because we like to share ideas... It tends to leak into our writing... The prologue gave me chills because OMC THOMAS YOU CREEPER.) also, while I kinda ship Fredashi, things will remain Gen as this story is about Hiro and Tadashi's relationship, not Fred and Tadashi. At most that will happen is Fred's commentary on how handsom Tadashi is. Tadashi is NOT interested in any relationship in this story. Basically this story features onesided!Fredashi on Fred's part.

ANYWAYS! Onto thanks! BIIIIIG thank you go to my many reviewers! Although a deviation from normal, I am currently typing this on my iPhone and have no way of actually listing recent reviewers in my thankyous so even though you don't see your username, please know that I treasure every single one of your reviews! I love love LOVE them! *hugs every single one you and hands out tissues and cookies*

ALSO! I have finals coming up this week so I'm pretty jam packed. I don't know when I'll have time to update next.

anyways, it's really late here. It's time for Sora to hit the hay. goodnight eveuone!


	19. Chapter 18

**_Till I'm Gone_**

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Eighteen<strong>

* * *

><p>After the whirlwind of testimonies from the teachers ( who almost eagerly pitched in to vouch for Tadashi's side of the story), Andrews found himself the recipient of a suspension from school. And on his record, unlikely to ever go away, was a deep, black-as-ink smudge. Tadashi wanted the brat expelled, but with the evidence stacked the way it was, suspension for a week was as good as he was going to get.<p>

That wasn't what had him pacing a trench in the lunchroom floor, though. Oh, no. It was the worry that Aunt Cass had left his poor baby brother alone with only doctors to periodically check him. What if he escaped his room and they didn't find him until it was too late? What if Hiro was able to find something that would actually _hurt _him? What if he -

A thin hand suddenly grasped around the crook of his elbow, halting Tadashi mid-step.

"You're streshing. Shtop it." Fred said through a mouthful of powdered donut. His jaw moved comically up and down as he tried to force the food into smaller pieces. His lips and cheeks were covered in the resulting white powder. The boy's adam apple bobbed as he swallowed, and then, opening his mouth as if to say something, Fred reached over to the nearly empty pack of mini-powdered donuts and shoved more food into his mouth.

Tadashi stared, slightly awed by the display of such a ferocious appetite. A sudden flash of Hiro's cheeks puffing out, mouth filled to burst with gummy bears made him sink into the seat next to Fred, head buried in his hands. Fred's frantic chewing of the powdered donuts slowed to a contemplative stop as he turned his head to observe his friend.

The blond's voice was muffled by the food still in his mouth but the high trace amounts of concern were obvious. "Tadahi? Khrm." the boy coughed, swallowing the food and clearing his throat. "Tadashi, what's wrong? You okay, man?"

Tadashi slumped in on himself a bit more at the verbal prodding, his entire posture screaming pure misery. The rage that had made his hands shake and his veins burn was long gone, leaving a coldness in Tadashi's chest that he had no way of recovering from at the moment. The only cure for the dark hollow feeling was cuddles from his precious little brother (despite all the squirming and shouting that would result from his attempts). Unfortunately, he was exiled to school for the time being, and he still had three hours (more, if you counted the time it took to transfer between classes) until he could leave. The ache was driving him insane.

"If there's anything I can do for you, just let me know." Fred hesitantly patted his back (Tadashi assumed it was because of the powder that covered his fingers).

The Japanese-American glanced up, considering the offer carefully for a moment as an idea crept into his mind. A smile grew on his face and his brown eyes twinkling with untold mischief. He turned to Fred. "How do your parents feel about you skipping class?"

"Well I'm only here for my family's publicity. They wouldn't care, as long I wasn't caught doing it." He looked sideways at Tadashi, suddenly suspicious. "..._why_?"

* * *

><p>Hiro stretched out his legs as far as they could go, sighing at the lovely burn of stretching muscles. <em>This is nice. No Tadashi to squash my legs, no Aunt Cass hovering at my side… I could stay like this forever… <em>

_Do do do-do do do do-do do-nyernerner…. nyernerner… do do! _

Hiro blinked at the faint noise. It sounded very familiar… Almost like a _theme_ of some sort…

_Do do do-do do do do-do do-_

Hiro's brow creased and he sat up. "Is that…" he looked over at the door as the noise grew louder. "Is that the theme to _Mission Impossible_?"

Through the small window, the hospitalized boy could see a teal beanie on top of a head bobbing in time to the music. The head paused. And suddenly blue eyes were peeking into his hospital room. Hiro stared back confusedly as the head suddenly disappeared, just as he was about to make eye contact.

_-nyernnerner… nyernerner… do do!_

The twelve year old blinked and rubbed at his eyes. He must have been dreaming. That was it… he was asleep, on the bed. Because whatever that was… it was just _weird_.

The theme from Mission Impossible faded into the distance and Hiro was left to flop down on the crinkly hospital bed. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh. He was drifting off to sleep (a dream within a dream, wasn't that funny?) when he heard it again.

_Do do do-do do… _Hiro shot up so fast that his head spun as his gaze slammed to the door. Sure enough, the teal beanie was back, bobbing to the music. Hiro's eyes narrowed skeptically. _What in the world?_ he wondered, a sneaking suspicion rising.

Blue eyes once more peered into the room and then ducked down just as fast as they appeared.

Hiro put his chin in his hand, fingers curling slightly over a pursed mouth. He reminded himself that he needed to breathe and took in a breath accordingly. Now who would send someone to come stalk him. He, who was safely hospitalized in a room practically guarded by doctors? _I wonder_.

Again, the music dissipated into silence. Hiro didn't move from his sitting position, the covers pooling around his waist. His brown eyes were glued to the small window, waiting.

It was about ten minutes later that he heard it once more. This time, Hiro was ready. _Do do… _

As soon as the amazing bouncing teal beanie was in view, Hiro _glared_. The minute the blue eyes peeked into the room, the boy locked gazes with his stalker and just stared intensely at the interloper. The blue eyes' bouncing froze, becoming wide. Hiro brought his hands up and mimed strangling something.

The blue eyes vanished suddenly and then there was a rather loud _crash_! A terrible high-pitched screech followed. "ABORT! ABORT! MISSION ABORT! COVER IS BLOWN! THE TARGET HAS SPOTTED THE AGENT! I REPEAT, COVER IS BLOWN!"

The Mission Impossible theme had been permanently silenced and a ringing absence of noise met Hiro's ears. The boy stared at his door and then clutched at his dark hair in frustration.

"TADASHI!" he screamed into the silence. His older brother was going to _pay _for sicking one of his friends on him!

* * *

><p>Fred raced down the hallway and to the elevator, heart pounding. Tadashi's kid brother sure had a <em>scary <em>glare! He was cute and adorable with that bird's nest of hair atop his head, but in all honesty, Fred really didn't wanna mess with him! Plus, the kid had spotted him peeping in, and that meant his cover had been blown!

He hit the button for the ground floor a little harder than necessary, but no one was around to notice. Which meant no one had seen the embarrassing fall he'd performed when he'd pushed himself backwards off the door. The teenager tapped his foot anxiously, watching the numbers rise to the floor he was on. He kinda wanted to go home now… better yet, to see Tadashi again, even if it was just to tell him that his brother was scary as a demon when bothered and that the kid was fine.

The elevator dinged and Fred was relieved to see that it was empty. It would make his retreat much easier to bear. He clambered inside and spent the descent jittery and bouncing on the balls of his feet.

When the elevator dinged again, he sprinted out and was headed directly for the doors when a familiar face caused him to freeze and his stomach to lurch sickeningly.

His cousin was just entering the lobby, a bouquet of Forget-Me-Not's clenched in his off hand.

Heart pounding in his throat, Fred slowly stalked over to his cousin but made sure to stop at least three feet away cautiously. "Thomas." he managed, trying to choke back the panic rising in his throat. "What are you _doing _here?" He was pretty sure that none of his relatives were sick… He _did_ kept close tabs on all of his aunts and uncles. After all, it was best to be on top of things. People liked that. Or at least… that's what dear _Mother_ said.

Thomas grinned, a sickeningly sweet thing. "Hello, Freddie~." he cooed. "I'm just bringing my mom some flowers since she's been sick with a pretty bad fever."

Fred's blue eyes narrowed. "You liar. Aunt Clarisa isn't even on the registry." he jabbed his hand back at the said sign of people in the care of the San Fransokyo Hospital. "So tell me, what are you really here for, Thomas?"

"Ever think that she's in a _private room_, Freddie?" Thomas said with narrowed eyes. "Your mom could easily have funded it for us. And you would never know because Aunt Chrissy just _loves _keeping you in the dark~."

Fred swallowed, eyes narrowing as a surge of pure anger swept him up and took his breath away. He wanted to punch his cousin so badly, to make his nose as crooked as his personality. _No._ the sixteen year old thought in a moment of clarity. _I won't let him drag me to his level_.

"That may be so, but I make it a point to look after our family, Thomas. That's more than I can say for you." Fred was relieved that his voice didn't shake.

Thomas snorted. "Whatever. Anyways, who I visit is none of your business!" he scowled, moving to sidestep his little cousin.

Fred stepped with him, blocking his way to the elevators. "It is when I know what you get up to." he said quietly, swallowing thickly. "I won't let you go any farther."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "And make a scene out where everyone can see?" he asked skeptically. Fred flinched and Thomas laughed. "Knew you'd be a coward about this too."

Fred didn't look him in the eye, knowing that Thomas was right. He _was _a coward. The seventeen-nearly eighteen year old snorted, stepping towards Fred. Fred took an involuntary step back, mind struggling with a bit of an escaped memory. _Hot breath ghosted across his neck_-

When Fred was able to rip his mind from the past and back into the present, Thomas was already nearing the elevators. The sixteen year old swore and ran as hard as he could to catch his cousin before he made it to the inner floors of the hospital.

Thomas was smirking at something on the old, out-dated flip phone in his dominant hand and Fred pushed himself a little harder so he could reach him in time. A thin hand grabbed the phone and ripped it out of the owner's unsuspecting grasp.

"HEY!" the elder cousin snarled, whirling on the younger, who quickly backtracked.

_Ohhh, this is a baaad idea!_ Fred realized frantically, spinning around and racing towards the front doors. His breath was coming in short gasps and he thought that his chest might just melt off of his ribs, they burned so bad!

The sixteen year old burst through the doors and ran down the sidewalk, diving into the crowded streets. He found himself struggling upstream, and from the curses behind him, Fred knew Thomas had dived right in after him. The knowledge spurred him to used his elbows to make push and shove the unsuspecting passerby. It wasn't long before he reached a lull in traffic, and Fred ran at full speed to the nearby park. There, no one would witness the clash between family.

Fred chanced a glance behind him and found that Thomas had slowed to a leisurely walk, hands jammed in his pockets. The bouquet of Forget-Me-Not's were long gone. Despite his cousin's slower pace, Fred didn't stop running until he had reached a thick tree and ducked behind it. He glanced at the picture on the phone that had started the chase and felt his heart _stop_. Bile rose in his throat and Fred had to swallow several times to actually keep it down. Its acidic taste burned his throat.

"Freddie, give me my phone." Thomas had arrived, and his sweet yet dark voice made the sixteen year old shudder.

"You're _sick_." Fred whispered, shaking. He refused to turn around and face the other. "You're so messed up in the head you don't even get how _sick _you are."

"Freddie. Give. Me. My Phone."

Fred whirled around, eyes wild. He held the phone delicately in two hands. "I'd be a fool to let you have it." he snarled, and with a _snap! _the flip phone lay in two sparking pieces on the ground. Thomas let out an angered snarl as Fred stomped his foot down. The crunch of delicate metal underneath his feet sent a savage wave of satisfaction down Fred's chest. But that sensation was quickly knocked out of him as Thomas lunged at Fred.

Fred turned tail and fled, hand digging for his own phone and hitting his most common speed dial.

"Heathcliff! I need you to pick me up! It's an emergency!" he wheezed and risked a glance over his shoulder, picking up the pace when he discovered his enraged cousin again chasing him, a new fire in his eyes. "Use the GPS on my phone, I don't care how, just do it!" and with that, he hung up, focused only on escaping.

Though out of breath and nearly out of time, Fred felt a sense of pleasure wash over him. He was _glad_ he'd snapped the disgusting male's phone. He shouldn't have had a picture of Hiro on it. He was only twelve. ...just like he had been…

His wish at the time had come true, and he suddenly felt very, very horrible.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN:<strong>_ Hey guys and happy holidays, Sora here! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews you've all left me! It's been awesome! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter as well! BIIIIIG thanks go to Melanie-March as always! And also, go check out her next chapter of A Cage of Fire, you won't regret it! It's a reaaaally good Fred centered fic, telling this universe's Fred's story!

BIG THANKS GO TO: The Golden Marauder, Narniac4aslan, Iambtastic, DreamweaverAki, Disneynerdbh6, snowflakeangel2, TridentTatoo, seems-pretty-legit, sherlywherlylock, DreamGirll, Sushi Hawkeye, Emilykit14 (I'm sorry you can't continue with us, *hugs*), SpeakTheTruth, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, Guest (#1) (O.O Thank you Guest, I'm glad you're so passionate about this! ^ ^), Guesst (#2), Regularshow565, h, bumblebee78, TooLazyToLogin, Guest (#3), DarthRexPoke44, PH, Atariel Tsukai, Purpalz Miner, Cyragece, BlueD, Madness shared, aaand Aprotny! Thank you all for your wonderful reviews!


	20. Chapter 19

**_Till I'm Gone_**

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Nineteen<strong>

* * *

><p>Hiro idly bounced his leg, glancing up towards the door every so often as he waited. He couldn't wait to leave this place… It had been a long, trying month for the twelve year old. Despite the wound from his suicide attempt being healed, the doctors had kept him at the hospital for limited observation at the request of Aunt Cass (most likely because Tadashi would've never left him alone otherwise).<p>

They apparently thought that he would cut again if he was released too early (They were right.) Sometimes he would catch himself considering it, weighing the pros and cons, the consequences for when (not if, _when_. He was in the psychiatric ward of the hospital but he wasn't _stupid_. He knew they'd find out somehow.) he got caught. Those brief moments of dark consideration gave him a rush of _something else _that was… well… he didn't exactly _know_ the word for it. Those thoughts only occurred in the dark of night, where he could consider them fully after he had been checked on for the night.

Ultimately, despite the dark thoughts swimming in his head, Hiro stayed far, far away from acting upon them. Did _anyone _know how hard it was to cut the waffles they served in this prison? Did they?! If they had taken away his plastic knives because he had been stupid and gave into those urges, he probably would have murdered someone in a bout of frustration-induced rage. Those waffles were like stone, you had to chip away at it just to get a bite sized piece.

But that was all in the past now, a month in the past, in fact! All that time spent resisting the dark pull had paid off!

The prospect of seeing the sky and feeling a real sea breeze made him almost giddy with an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time. He was excited to remind himself what freedom tasted like. Now if only Aunt Cass would hurry up and sign him out…

The boy flopped down on the hospital bed that had been his for a month and groaned dramatically. How long could one person take to sign some stupid forms?!

Bored to tears and impatience rising up to bubble out of his mouth in muffled yet tellingly frustrated groans, Hiro grabbed his pillow and plonked it over his face. The boy started wiggling, his momentum causing him to roll back and forth as the levels of his boredom rose to ever higher heights.

"Hiro? Aunt Cass is done with the… papers?" Hiro froze, one foot in the air as Tadashi's familiar voice trailed into the realm of mass confusion. The twelve year old just _knew _Tadashi had a weird look on his face, he could tell by how his older brother had slowed down his words.

"Hi 'Dashi…" he mumbled into the pillow, slowly putting his foot down and refusing to look at his older brother, lest he burst out laughing.

"So… ready to get out of here?" Tadashi asked, and the awkwardness in his tone actually made giggles rise all the way to Hiro's throat. He managed to swallow them before they could escape and spawn more of their kind. That would make it _really_ hard for him to breathe.

Knowing that if he opened his mouth right then, he would start laughing and never stop, Hiro just let out an agreeing mumble that was muffled by the pillow in answer to the question. The sound of his older brother's shoes scuffling against the floor reached the boy's ears but he paid little mind to the noise. That was until he found the pillow being unceremoniously jerked away from his face. His startled brown eyes met the amused gaze of his older brother.

"And I thought you would be jumping at the bit to get out of here." Tadashi mused, fluffing the pillow absentmindedly as Hiro swung himself back up into a sitting position.

"Yeah, yeah…" the boy giggled, before slapping his hands over his mouth, brown eyes wide. Tadashi raised an eyebrow, the humor in his eyes causing them to glint strangely. The older Hamada set the pillow down on the bed and curled his hands into claws. Hiro's eyes widened even further and he dashed off the bed with a squeak as Tadashi lunged.

"Nooo! Tada_shi_!" the boy howled, laughter light and free as his older brother raced after him, growling in an imitation of a tickle monster.

"RAWR!" Tadashi laughed, "I'm gonna get you, Hiro!" In accordance with his declaration, the elder Hamada dove for his younger brother and managed to scoop him up in his arms.

"Nii-san!" Hiro protested, squealing as Tadashi's fingers found one of the sensitive spots on his side. "N-No! I'm ticklish there!"

"That's the point knucklehead." Tadashi teased, poking that spot again and enjoying the childish glee at hearing his little brother squeal with laughter. Hiro squirmed in his hold, giggles spilling out without his permission as he fought his older brother's onslaught.

"M-_Meanie_!" the boy wailed with a hiccuping laugh as he wriggled. "You're so me-_mean_, Nii-san!"

Tadashi grinned down at his little brother, fingers working their magic to draw out those beautiful bells of laughter from his little chest. "No I'm not." he protested as his fingers made Hiro squeal and giggle until he couldn't breathe.

"Y-yes you are!" Hiro gasped. "Tadashi - _s-stop_!" he pleaded as another peal of laughter escaped his mouth.

Tadashi's eyes narrowed. "What's the magic word?" he drawled lazily, fingers poking all of the sensitive spots on his ribs. The teenager made sure to hold on tight as his little brother tried to squirm away from his tormentor with another giggling squeal.

"_P-please?_" Hiro said breathlessly, his giggles turning the answer into a question.

Tadashi pondered for a moment, and then nodded. He poked Hiro's side one last time before he released his little brother. Hiro crumpled to the floor in a mess of limbs as giggles and gasps shook his tiny frame.

Once his breath had been recovered and he had calmed down, Hiro got up and frowned up at his older brother in what was more like a pout than a frown. "Very _funny_, Nii-san."

Tadashi grinned down at his little brother and ruffled his fluffy hair. "I thought so, too." he agreed, ignoring the sarcasm that laced Hiro's tone. "C'mon, Aunt Cass is waiting down in the lobby."

And it was then that Hiro remembered the reason that he had been so bored waiting in the first place. "Oh yeah!" he gasped, looking at the open door with growing excitement. "I have _FREEDOM AGAIN!" _the boy cheered, before glancing up at Tadashi with a gleam all his own. A small smirk found itself on the youth's lips.

Tadashi only had seconds to catch on before Hiro shot forwards with a laughing cry of "Race you, Nii-san!"

"Hiro! We shouldn't race in a hospital!" Tadashi spluttered, but it was too late. Hiro was already out the door. With little choice, the elder Hamada was forced to tear out of the room and catch up with his little speed demon of a brother, who was already five doors down the hall.

"HIRO! STOP!"

"CAN'T CATCH ME, NII-SAN!" came the resulting cackle as the boy turned abruptly around a corner.

Tadashi growled but increased his pace and speed accordingly as his brotherly pride was stomped on by the sass of his little brother. "Oh I'll _give _you a race, you little…" the sixteen year old grumbled as he pushed himself off the wall to help change directions.

Oh yes… the little brat was going to get what was coming to him…

* * *

><p>Days passed, and Hiro found himself wanting to scream in frustration. He hadn't known it, but he ended up trading one prison for another (slightly more comfortable) one when he returned home. Tadashi and Aunt Cass probably didn't think that they made it so, but their over protectiveness drove Hiro up the wall and made him want to tear his hair out.<p>

So many times had he gone down to grab something only to be shooed back up! It was enough to make an adult crazy, let alone a twelve year old struggling to find himself. Hiro was left feeling restless and very, very annoyed.

Such was his situation now. An overbearing Tadashi was incoming at his two o'clock, an overly cheerful grin plastered on his face.

"Hiro~!" The older teen practically cooed and Hiro turned sharply on his heel, mind screaming, _NOPE, NOPE, NOPE. NO THANK YOU, GO CUDDLE SOMEONE ELSE, YOU BIG NERD! _He was nearly at the foot of the stairs when large, warm arms encircled his waist.

"Tadashi, get _off!_" Hiro yelped, feet kicking in mid air as he found himself squished in a huge bear hug. "Let me go!"

Tadashi nuzzled his little brother, cheek rubbing against his fluffy hair. "But I've _missed_ you!" He said. Hiro let out a hiss, hands practically claws as he tried to pry his brother's arms off of his person.

"Get. Off. Tadashi." Hiro growled, his nails digging into Tadashi's skin. Tadashi remained steadfast.

"Nope~." Tadashi cooed, hugging Hiro tighter to his chest. "I haven't seen you _all day_, it's been _forever..._"

"It's only been six hours, Tadashi. Not 'forever'." Hiro protested, wriggling and curling up so Tadashi had to carry all of his weight.

Unfortunately, Tadashi was the kind of brother who could hold him at a moment's notice, and so that tactic only allowed the elder Hamada to sling him around to plop both of them on the family couch. Tadashi loosened his grip slightly to grab the TV remote and Hiro took the opportunity to make a break for it.

Tadashi's ninja reflexes - refined by years and years of karate practice- allowed him to snap out and grab Hiro's wrist. The resulting tug sent him sprawling back onto Tadashi's lap.

"_Tadashi_. Let. Me. Go." Hiro hissed, glaring at everything.

Tadashi let out a noncommittal hum and merely turned on the TV. This left Hiro hissing his displeasure as he made another vain attempt at squirming away from his brother's iron grip.

The boy flopped against his captor in relative defeat. "Tadashi, why are you making me watch your stupid nerd shows?"

"Because you'll just go upstairs by yourself and sulk." came the distracted reply. Hiro bristled.

"I do _not, _'sulk'! I ponder. Deeply."

"And that's sulking." Tadashi poked his little brother's cheek, making him scowl and bat the offending appendage away.

"Is not." Hiro knew he was pouting.

"Is too." Tadashi flipped through the channels, trying to figure out what to watch.

"Is _not_!"

"Hiro when you sit in a corner and glare at everything, _that's _sulking. You sulk. A lot. So I'm distracting you from your sulkiness."

Hiro growled but said nothing, arms folded across his chest. Tadashi snorted, poking him in the side. The growl transitioned into a high pitched squeak as the boy jerked away from the offender.

"Tadashi!"

Tadashi played clueless. "What?"

"You poked me!" Hiro scowled.

"No I didn't." Tadashi laughed. "What are you talking about, Hiro?"

"You. Poked. Me." Hiro jabbed Tadashi's arm with a finger for emphasis.

"So what if I did, whatcha gonna do about it?" the elder Hamada teased goodnaturedly. His humor quickly faded as Hiro flinched, mind flashing to a similar sentence in a far harsher context.

Tadashi let go of his little brother and watched with worried eyes as Hiro scrambled off to the far end of the couch. The boy curled up into a ball, shivering from memories and a chill that had no place in the warmth of their home.

Tadashi slowly got up and knelt by his little brother. "Hey…" the sixteen year old swallowed drily. "Hiro… You aren't there anymore."

"Shut up! Leave me alone!" Hiro lashed out, voice thick. "Leave me _alone…_"

"Not happening, bonehead." Tadashi refrained from touching his little brother and settled down on his knees for the long haul. "I'm staying right here. You're safe now. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you like that again."

Hiro curled in tighter on himself. A part of him heard Tadashi speaking, but the other half of him was still yelling in fear and desperation, focused only on the rush of _no, no, no, no! Don't do this PLEASE! I can't breathe… I can't breath! I'm going to drown… Someone, HELP ME! _

"Hiro. You're at home. You're _safe_. "

Hiro's breath hitched as tears streamed down his face. "T-Tada…" he sobbed and Tadashi scooped his little brother up loosely in his arms.

"Shhh… you're safe now, Hiro. They won't hurt you again. I promise." Tadashi soothed as trembling hands latched onto his shirt.

"B-but they _did_ and… and I can't forget it!" Hiro whispered. "I want to forget! I want to forget it all and never be bothered by it again!"

Tadashi let out a hum as he carded his fingers through Hiro's hair. "If you forgot, then what could you learn from it?"

Hiro pushed himself out of Tadashi's grasp and the older teen let him go even as his heart ached at the motion.

"'_Learn from it_'? What can I '_learn_' from being forced onto my knees and having my head dunked in a _dirty toilet_?" the boy asked his elder with a dark grimace on his face. "What can I _learn_ by being shoved into lockers and having to pick my way out?! Tell me Tadashi! What can I learn from all of that!?"

Tadashi shut his eyes and attempted to swallow the lump that resurfaced whenever Hiro mentioned what had happened to him. "That's something you have to figure out yourself. It's your journey and the way you handle your experiences defines who you are."

Hiro let out an aggravated hiss and stood up. "That's a load of crap, Tadashi." he said bitterly. "Stop trying to be wise when you're not."

Tadashi winced but conceded the point. "I…" the teen paused, biting his lip. His expression lowered. "I don't have all the answers, Hiro… I don't know why…" he had to swallow again as the lump grew. "I don't know. I don't know alot of things, especially why people do the horrible things they do. I just know that we try to reason and try to make things seem like they hurt less, when in reality… When in reality, they really just hurt more when you try to explain them away."

Hiro scowled, cheeks still wet from the previous tears. "Why does life have to hurt so much?" he asked sullenly, sitting down on the floor by Tadashi.

Tadashi settled for a shrug and found that Hiro's tense shoulders had relaxed when no words came. His heart sunk, but at the same time rose up to greater heights. The conflicting sensations left the sixteen year old rather confused. He wanted to help Hiro… and yet his words weren't welcome. But maybe his silence could help where his words obviously didn't?

The silence between the two brothers grew long and Tadashi broke it before it transformed into something awkward. "Hiro… I just want to let you know that if you want to talk, you can talk to me. If you want, I won't even say anything."

Hiro let out a quiet hum and leaned into Tadashi's warmth. "I… I'll think about it." he whispered, looking anywhere but Tadashi. "...Thanks."

Tadashi nodded but didn't say anything else. He'd try this silence thing for a while.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_*falls out from the sky* hey guys! I'm back! Man… It's been an interesting holiday season this year! Full of self realizations that kinda shake your muses up a bit, family visits, family friends coming over, presents, food, friends and arguments with the cast of characters… yeah…. It's been interesting so far. Can't believe the year is practically over!

Also! You guys really, _**really **_ need to check out Melanie-March's A Cage of Fire, it's gonna tell you really important stuff that I can't (because this is gen and I'm _keeping _it gen gosh dang it!).

Me and Melanie have also decided to go on a bi-weekly update schedule on Wednesdays at 6:00PM our time (due to school and other evening engagements). We will be alternating who updates on Wednesdays so we can pump out better and more thought out chapters. It also allows us to make sure we haven't missed anything in our editing sweeps. (This chapter is the last of what Mel termed "erratic updates" lol.)

Big thanks as always go to Melanie-March (she seriously has saved my butt so many times it's not even funny)! Big thanks also go too: TheKreibae, Alexisdeadddx, Epically-ME, The Golden Marauder, Julie, RazzlePazzleDooDot, Schreeching Harmony, sherlywherlylock, Kyubei, DreamGirll, Melanie-March (pats head with a grin), DisneyandWildKrattfangirl (if you really, really want to know check out A Cage of Fire like I've said XD), DreamweaerAki, Madness Shared, Emilykit14 (As soon as a safe thing is posted I'll let you know, sweetheart.), Guest, BlueD, regularshow565, E, Esax12x, h, Cori, Atariel Tsukai, PH, Narniac4aslan, Phinbellafan2298, Cyragece, Aiko Wind, AwaitTheRise, Guest, aaaand KodiakWolfe13!

*sends out cookies and drinks* Happy New Year everyone!


	21. Chapter 20

**_Till I'm Gone_**

* * *

><p><em>Sora Matasuki<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Twenty<strong>

* * *

><p>Groping around for the light switch, Tadashi blinked when the overhead lights flickered to life. He was certainly grateful to Aunt Cass; after all, she had dragged Hiro out of the house to go shopping and they would be gone for quite a while (their Aunt did love her shopping, even at the supermarket).<p>

He took a deep breath and his gaze fixed itself on Hiro's computer. It had remained dormant since Hiro had returned home. His little brother hadn't even gone five paces near the thing. The entire desk area housing the computer seemed to have gained a Hiro-Repelling bubble around it while the boy had been in the hospital.

Not that Tadashi could blame him, he would have been afraid, too. What with all the negativity crafted to target just one person and all. Tadashi didn't want to touch the machine either but the sixteen year old had _business_ with the computer. Business that Hiro didn't need to see.

Determination burned like a roaring fire within his chest, and he grabbed the black desk chair and spun it around. He didn't sit down. Because when your knees crumple under your weight and your butt hits the cushion with a thump, that's more like falling. His hands were trembling as he put one on the mouse.

He could do this. He _had_ to do this. For Hiro. Tadashi wasn't letting those fiends get away scott free with hurting his little brother. His pride and his duty as an older brother _demanded_ it.

The sixteen year old breathed in through his nose and fought back the chilling memories of an empty room so clean it seemed sterile in comparison to its natural state. It wasn't like that. It _wasn't_. Hiro was just _fine_. He was with Aunt Cass. Nothing could hurt him with her around.

He had to tell himself this firmly for several minutes just to get his courage up enough that he could wake up the computer. It opened without prompting for a password (Hiro still hadn't put it back up) and that fact made Tadashi flinch.

_You took off the password so we'd find your goodbye, didn't you, Hiro? _The thought pierced through Tadashi's mind and a choked whine filled his throat. The sixteen year old's hand flew off the mouse like it had been burned and he buried his stinging eyes into his palms as a wave of horror and pain washed over him. He shuddered, his hands pressing so hard into his eyes that he saw stars and they ached for another reason.

A sob escaped his lips at the realization that he could have _lost _his little brother. The sudden need to hold Hiro tight made him feel like a brick had been thrown at his chest, leaving him winded and sore. But Hiro was with Aunt Cass, shopping, and so, the breaking of Tadashi's heart continued without any healing balm.

Tadashi breathed in shakily; the shards of his heart piercing ever inward made his chest ache with sharp pain. He scrubbed away the budding tears with the back of his hand and took in another shuddering breath. Hiro. He needed to do this, bring justice to Hiro's tormentors. If he didn't do this now, he never would.

He opened dark brown eyes shining with held back tears and looked at his little brother's bright screen. It all lay within this small, fragile machine. It bore record of the eight months of pain and suffering of a twelve year old child brought to the edge of death's door.

Tadashi would be _damned _if he didn't protect his little brother from the world's evils again. If he _failed _the only remaining member of his family again, it would be better for him to have never been born.

The sixteen year old let out a hollow laugh at how his thoughts had turned so dark and grimly clicked on Hiro's internet history once more.

His stomach curdled as he hovered the mouse over the video entilted Genius Goes For a Swim. He didn't want to see his little brother's fight all over again. Once was enough! Tadashi swallowed but shook his head and pressed his finger down on the mouse.

The video started playing but at that same time Tadashi was already ripping it off the internet, praying that the code would transfer safely and that there weren't any bugs. The teen wouldn't know if it was safe until the process was completely done. But the sixteen year old was already moving to the next stop in his list of things he needed to catalog:

The comments on Hiro's profile.

Tadashi clicked down on the mouse with more force than was necessary and then froze at all of the comments that had sprung up in the wake of the video that had been Hiro's _suicide note. _

And some of them hadn't even bothered to hide their usernames. Tadashi felt a grin slide up on his face and from the way it twisted his skin, he knew it wasn't a very nice one.

* * *

><p><em>RindomanL47: do u think he's actually gone? cause I mean… that video seemed pretty final dudes. Did we totally just win?<em>

_OrderOrderInCourt: his bro totaly hacked the account man said he was in the ohspital_

_*hospital_

_ForgetMeNotInYourLife: LOL lame he shouldve gone through with what he was spouting that brat is all bark and no bite ...if you know what I mean..._

_RindomanL47: whatcha gonna do, FMN? U got something planned or not?_

* * *

><p>Tadashi's eyes narrowed. This was a recent conversation… only a day old… what kind of idiot had a conversation on their target's public profile where everyone could see it?<p>

Obviously this trio of bozos but still… It rankled Tadashi that _this_ type of numbskull had managed to get under his little brother's tough skin enough to drive him to a suicide attempt. For some reason the sixteen year old had pictured them to be… well… _smarter_.

Tadashi shook his head to dislodge the thought, a frown slowly creeping onto his face. He'd have to analyze that train of thought later, for now… he needed to screenshot this conversation in all of it's incriminating glory. With a series of clicks of the keyboard, the deed was done for this section and Tadashi nodded firmly to himself.

_Guess what, you little maggots: I've got the time, AND your usernames all in one place. _Tadashi thought viciously. _I just need your IP addresses and then you'll REALLY be toast. _

Unfortunately, he had to continue reading back in the messages before he could go hacking for IPs. There were a lot of people involved in the conspiracy against his brother, after all. These older messages, however, brought the sick feeling to the forefront of Tadashi's mind.

* * *

><p><em>wow he's so pathetic<em>

_haha not so smart now r u..._

* * *

><p>And then, the one thing that always seemed to kick him so hard in the chest seemed to emblazon itself across the screen:<p>

* * *

><p><em>You don't seem to get it, nerd boy, so lemme spell it out for you: you don't belong here. No one would care if you just died.<em>

_Tadashi wouldn't even care if you just dropped DEAD._

* * *

><p>Tadashi buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking. But the tears had dried up by this time, and all that was left was the <em>rage<em>.

How _dare _they insinuate that Tadashi never cared? How _dare _they put words in his mouth (words that his little brother obviously had believed and with how distant he had been… could he blame him?) when Tadashi had very nearly broken alongside the limp form on the floor? How _dare _they!

His fingers hit the keyboard so hard that they ached. The teen knew that savage grin from before was back.

He was going to make these people _pay_.

A flashing notification brought his attention to the ripped video and his eyes narrowed. The cursor moved jaggedly as he jerked the mouse up to the top of the pad and then clicked savagely down. He needed to see if his efforts to gather evidence had proven worthwhile.

"_-nerd ever consider taking a swim?_"

The video played smoothly and Tadashi trembled when Hiro was nearly drowned not once, not twice, but _three _times.

He closed his dark eyes and pressed the heel of his hands to them as they burned. A harsh laugh bubbled up from his chest and spilled out of his throat.

It had worked. It had worked! It had transferred without any glitches! It had shown clearly two of Hiro's attackers, Andrews' name was spoken clearly and the culmination of all these things lead to one certain fact:

These maggots had just damned themselves by taking a video of their actions and then posting it into a public domain. They were caught in the act of attempted murder of a minor and Tadashi could _use _that as the basis of his case to get Hiro the justice he deserved.

And to cement the nail into the coffin even more, Tadashi needed to screenshot the video in it's original place. With confidence the sixteen year old clicked on the internet history and selected the link to the video Genius Takes a Swim.

Tadashi blinked. The error message wouldn't go away.

* * *

><p><em>This page does not exist. :(<em>

* * *

><p>… Tadashi stared. ...<em>What?<em>

He refreshed the page.

* * *

><p><em>This page does not exist. :(<em>

* * *

><p><strong>What.<strong>

* * *

><p><em>This page does not exist. :(<em>

* * *

><p><em>This page does not exist. :(<em>

* * *

><p><em>This page does not exist. :(<em>

* * *

><p><em><strong>WHAT?!<strong>_

Tadashi swore and slammed his fist into the table with a loud thud. There was a roaring in his ears as he stared at the white page, the little circle frowning face mocking him in it's cartoony design.

With an infuriated yell, Tadashi pushed some of the untouched tools that still littered Hiro's workspace off the table. The chair rolled away from him as he stood there, trembling with the strength of his rage. Tadashi gritted his teeth and slammed his hands down onto the table with a bitten curse. His head hung as he stared down at the dark wood of the desk.

He hated this. Absolutely _hated _this feeling of helplessness that welled up inside his chest. Things had been going so well but now - but _now_! Tadashi pushed himself upright and kicked at the desk with a roar.

The sixteen year old staggered back with another curse word already falling from his lips. His foot throbbed angrily in time to the beating of his heart.

Now his evidence for one of his brother's tormentors was _gone_. His eyes fell on the still alive program he had used to rip the video off the internet. At least he had gotten to the video in time.

The one he truly cared about was getting Andrews. He would make that maggot _pay_.

"Tadashi? Are… you alright? I heard some yelling."

Tadashi froze as his little brother's words connected with his head. "H-Hiro!" he squeaked, eyes flashing to the computer and back to his little brother who was leaning against the wall, confusion clear on his face. "Y-You're back! Already! ...Hi!"

"Hi yourself you big nerd." Hiro shot back. From the uncertain expression on his face it was clear to Tadashi that the twelve year old was trying to figure something out. The elder Hamada could see the gears turning inside the little genius' head.

The preteen walked further into the room and Tadashi backed slowly into the desk, trying to hide what was on the computer screen.

"...Tadashi? Why are my tools on the floor?"

Tadashi scrambled for an answer. "I uh… bumped them! Yeah, I bumped them! I meant to pick them up but you came home before I could pick them up! Hahaha isn't… that funny?"

Hiro raised an eyebrow, looking entirely unconvinced. "You suck at lying Nii-san." he deadpanned. "Also, what are you hiding on the computer?"

"Ahahaha! Me? Hide something? It's nothing! I'm not hiding anything….!" he squawked as Hiro tried to peer at the computer screen behind Tadashi's back. "No! No! You can't look Hiro!"

Hiro leaned back so he could look up at his older brother, a smirk on his face. "Why? Is it something Aunt Cass would hate my innocent eyes from seeing?"

Tadashi turned bright red. "_What!?_ NO! That's not-" he took a deep breath and looked at his little brother seriously. "It's something you _don't _want to see, Hiro. Trust me."

"Why? I'm in highschool I think I can handle a little bit of p-"

"It's not that Hiro." Tadashi let out a pained sigh and gripped his little brother by the shoulders in an attempt to ground himself. "It's not that."

Hiro wriggled out of Tadashi's grip. "Then what _is _it, Tadashi?" he complained. "I wanna _know_!"

"Hiro."

"Whaaaat?"

Tadashi raised an eyebrow before shaking his head and getting down to Hiro's level so he could look him straight in the eyes. "Do you really want to know?" he asked seriously, dark eyes boring right into his little brother's.

Hiro blinked. "Well… _yeah_. It's not every day that you find your older brother freaking out about the computer."

Tadashi sighed again. "I'm gathering evidence so that Andrews and his cronies can't hurt you or anyone else again, and I didn't want you hurt by what I'm gathering."

Hiro swallowed, throat tight. "But… It was my-"

"It _wasn't _your fault!" Tadashi gently grabbed his little brother around the shoulders and pressed his forehead against Hiro's. "It has _never _been your fault! It's theirs and theirs alone!"

"But I _let _them hurt me! I still knew some moves that you'd taught me but I never used them! I was too scared to fight them off!" Hiro shot back, shivering. Tears were welling up in his wide brown eyes and it made Tadashi's heart break.

"Just because you were scared, doesn't mean what happened to you is your fault. They _chose_ to hurt you and just because you didn't fight back doesn't mean you're to blame." he told his little brother sternly.

"But… I was helpless! I couldn't- I couldn't-" And then Hiro began to sob.

Tadashi rubbed Hiro's back soothingly. "Shhh… It's alright. Hiro." Hiro sniffed and looked up at his older brother through red rimmed eyes. Tadashi continued softly, "Do you want me to teach you karate again, little brother?"

And still sniffling, Hiro nodded quietly. Tadashi reached down and ruffled his fluffy hair. "Then we'll practice together from now on. You don't have to feel defenseless anymore."

Hiro suddenly clung to his older brother in a tight hug. "Thank you, Tadashi." he mumbled into his older brother's shirt.

Tadashi closed his eyes and fought back tears. "You're welcome." he whispered and pressed a kiss to his little brother's hair.

* * *

><p>If one was to venture to the Lucky Cat Cafe in the wee hours of the evening some days latter, they would hear a very interesting commotion coming off from the upper deck.<p>

"Your balance is off!"

"No, it's not!"

"Oh yeah? If I do this-"

There was a yelp that accompanied the thud of a small body hitting the padding laid out all over the deck amongst the flowers and other potted plants Aunt Cass lovingly cultivated.

"Tadashi! That's not fair!" Hiro protested as he scrambled back to his feet and into the position Tadashi had been showing him.

Tadashi raised his eyebrow, unimpressed. "You know fights aren't fair. If you learn a faulty way - even if it seems like the best way at first - you'll end up flat on your back." The teen nodded at the padding pointedly. " Like you just did."

Hiro's eyes narrowed as a scowl turned his face dark. Tadashi stepped back and nodded at his little brother. "Let's go back to the beginning."

Hiro slumped from his position in exasperation. "Again?!" Hiro protested. "But we've been doing the same thing for the last hour!"

Tadashi didn't move, arms folded across his chest.

"_Again, _Hiro."

Hiro growled but shifted his stance, and was soon moving in the kata that Tadashi had shown him. "This is stupid. I already _know _this stuff!"

"And yet you've been lax in your techniques. You're getting lazy, little brother!"

Hiro growled and launched himself out of the kata. "I am _not_ lazy!"

Tadashi neatly sidestepped the blows Hiro attempted to land on his person. "Oh really? Prove it to me then."

If Hiro's temper hadn't already blown, this would have steamed it even worse. "I'll prove it, alright!" the boy growled as Tadashi easily batted his hand away once again.

Tadashi didn't look very impressed, which made Hiro even more annoyed. He attempted an upward swing, but was easily rebuffed. The twelve year old's eye twitched as his older brother grabbed his wrist and made to trip him.

Using that opening, Hiro spun on his heel and over his older brother's extended foot. Despite how his arm was crossed over his chest in an awkward position, Hiro knew he'd taken his brother by surprise, if only by a little. Step 1: Evasion was a success!

But just as the thought of achievement passed through his mind, the boy found his world turned a sickening blur. Despite being rather dizzy, Hiro pieced together that Tadashi had pulled him enough that he had been sent spinning like a dancer performing a salsa. "Ack!"

Tadashi chuckled as he let go and Hiro nearly face planted back onto the mats. At the last minute, the boy saved his balance and spun around with an upper kick.

Tadashi caught his ankle in one hand and raised his eyebrow. "Good try, Hiro."

Hiro glowered, wobbling slightly as his leg threatened to give out on him. "Shut up, Nii-san."

"By the way, your balance is still off." Tadashi pointed out, looking at Hiro's wobbling leg. Hiro stuck out his tongue and made a face. Tadashi let go.

"Nyaaaaack!" Hiro fell.

The boy lay on the padded mat, staring blankly up at the fading blue color of the sky with the breath knocked out of him. Tadashi leaned over with a wide grin.

"You okay, Hiro?"

Hiro let out a groan and glared at his highly amused brother. "Not. Funny."

"Oh yes it is, Otouto." Tadashi snickered before offering a hand to help his little brother up. Hiro grasped his older brother's hand just as a devious thought ran through his genius little head.

Instead of getting up, Hiro pulled backwards and Tadashi fell forward with a startled yelp. Hiro leaned back and began to laugh as his older brother pushed himself up and gave him a baleful glare.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: <strong>_Hey guys! IIIIITTTT'SSSSSS WEDNESDAY! Sorry for this being unbeta-ed but Melanie had some technical difficulties. An edited version will be up sometime tonight or tomorrow. XD Also, me and Mel have started up a Facebook page if you wanna go check that out XD Its a wonderful place for you guys to ask us any questions (and see our derpy-ness).

The link is on both of our profiles, so you can check either way.

BIG THANKS GO TOOOO: Melanie-March (I can't thank you enough, Mel!), KodiakWolfe13, sherlywherlylock, BlueD, seems-pretty-legit, DreamGirll, faybird, DreamweaverAki, reagularshow565, DisneyandWildKrattfangirl, TooLazyToLogin, Narniac4aslan(...maybe? IDK she's kinda out of the picture at the moment but who knows *shrugs* right now I'm focusing on Hiro, Tadashi and Fred), anomonist (awww a song based off of chapter 13? I'M HONORED! uwu), E, The Golden Marauder, Purpalz Miner, lintuolento, Disneynerdbh6, Sabeloid, Cori, (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU FOR READING HER STORY IT MEANS THE WORLD TO US), .ryder (I'm glad I rekindled that sparkle of magic for you! Believe me when I say that the source material is WAY better than my story ever can be…), FanGirlJen, Guest, Madness Shared, Atariel Tsukai, Luigifided531, ABreathAwayFromWhereYouAre (hugs, I am so sorry I'm glad you enjoy it even though it brings up those memories.), aaaaand BYoshi1993!

Also, 600+ REVIEWS? *faints on a mountain of tissue boxes*


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